HYDERABAD, Feb 9: The president, Lawyers Committee for Human Rights, Aqil Lodhi, advocate, in the annual report of the committee has said that at present there were 173 political prisoners confined in various jails of Pakistan.

These prisoners included Qazi Hussain Ahmed, Maulana Fazalur Rehman, Asif Ali Zardari, Aftab Ahmed Sherpao and many a former senators, MNAs, MPAs and advisors to the former prime ministers, Benazir Bhutto and Mian Mohammad Nawaz Sharif.

Mr Lodhi said that at least in 42 jails of the country, far more prisoners were being confined than the official capacities of these jails and they were not being given facilities in accordance with the Jail Manual 1894 and Prisons Act 1900. Due to this, the prisoners resorted to rioting in the jails, he said.

The report said that in the name of Karo-Kari, 1103 persons, including women, were killed in Punjab, 917 in Sindh, 210 in NWFP and 93 in Balochistan.

Many cases of sexual assault on children were also reported.

The report said that 2000 cases of fraud were reported at various police stations in which the innocent people were looted on different pretext.

It said that substandard goods, including life saving drugs, were also being openly sold in the country.

Mr Lodhi said that the report was being sent to the human rights organizations of the world.