SAHIWAL, May 28: The provincial jail minister has sought an explanation from Sahiwal District Jail officials into alleged torture of a death convict in a death cell on May 24, for not paying ‘monthly’ amounts to jail officials, Dawn has learnt.

One May 25, the relatives of death convicted Abdul Sattar came from Deepalpur to see him in Sahiwal Jail. Sattar was held in the block 5 death cell. Jail officials did not allow the visitors to meet him.

"We learnt from jail sources that our relative was severely tortured with iron rods and sticks by chief head warden Mohsin,” said Abdul Karim, prisoner’s relative. He said Sattar had refused to pay monthly amounts or ‘Nazrana’ to jail officials. He said jail officials informed them Sattar had been injured in some infighting erupted in the jail and was not able to see any one.

On May 26, prisoner's relatives met Jail Minister Chaudhry Abdul Ghafoor in Lahore and informed him about the incident. The minister immediately called for an explanation into the matter.

Assistant superintendents of jail -- Saboor Sukhera and Malik Ijazul Haq – told Dawn that inmates of block 5 scuffled with each other and as a result Sattar was injured. "To save Sattar, I shifted him to a confinement cell,” said Shukera. Both officials denied allegations of receiving monthly amounts from prisoners. Mr Haq said he had also conducted a probe into the matter and recommended hat all inmates of Block 5 be separated and held in different cells.

Jail Superintendent Naveed Rauf said the issue had been settled and a deputy superintendent had gone to Lahore to report to the minister.

OPEN-DOOR POLICY: District Coordination Officer Muhammad Khan Khichi directed all officers to enforce the open-door policy and they should be available for public from 10am to 1pm.