PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court on Wednesday ordered smooth electric supply to prisons across the province at the nighttime and asked the Peshawar Electric Supply Company not to carry out loadshedding “on any pretext.”

A bench consisting of Chief Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim and Justice Ijaz Anwar observed that if the need arose, it would order both federal and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governments to supply electricity to prisons from separate feeders.

It directed additional chief secretary (home) Mohammad Abid Majeed to produce a report within 14 days about the steps taken by the government for improving conditions of prisons in the province and addressing complaints of inmates.

The court directed prison authorities to resolve issues of prisoners on priority, and fixed for Aug 13 the next hearing into an application sent in by Khursheed Ali Khan, who is serving a life term in the Haripur Central Prison.

Seeks report on govt steps for improving jail conditions

The prisoner pointed out several problems facing prisoners, including power outages.

ACS (home) Mohammad Abid Majeed, IG Prisons Usman Mehsud, Pesco chief executive Akhtar Hameed Khan, president of the PHC Bar Association Fida Gul, additional advocate general Naumanul Haq and other officials appeared before the bench.

When the bench asked Pesco officials why loadshedding was being carried out in prisons, they said load management was carried out according to schedule.

The chief justice observed that he visited several prisons in the province and examined the living conditions.

The bench observed that it was the responsibility of the government to provide facilities to prisoners.

It added that recently, prisoners suffered from different diseases due to the scorching heat.

The bench observed it won’t tolerate power loadshedding in prisons at night.

ACS Abid Majeed said it was their top priority to provide maximum possible facilities to prisoners and for that purpose millions of rupees had been allocated.

He said that they had been installing big fans as well as air coolers in different prisons.

The official said the project had already been completed in major prisons at Peshawar, Mardan, and Haripur.

He, however, said authorities faced problems due to the shortage of funds.

The chief justice asked him to address the issue on an emergency basis saying better prison conditions are the court’s top priority.

The bench wondered what would happen to the prisoners if they won’t sleep all through the day due to power cuts.

Justice Ijaz Anwar opined that the government should go for the solarisation of prisons as electricity charges were on the rise.

IG (prisons) Usman Mehsud said prisoners had been taken out of barracks turn by turn so that they could get fresh air.

The ACS informed the bench that he headed a committee on prison reforms and would look into the application and other petitions about prisons to ensure early resolution of the problems of inmates.

The prisoner also complained that jail authorities had withdrawn facilities of self-cooking by prisoners. He claimed that several inmates were unwell and couldn’t have the prison food.

The bench observed that the government should allocate proper funds for prisons.

Published in Dawn, August 1st, 2024