Tag: facilities

  • CCTV camera points towards Khan’s open bathroom in prison cell, judge takes notice

    Additional District and Sessions Judge Shafqut Ullah Khan has termed former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s privacy concerns “genuine” regarding the presence of a CCTV camera around his toilet at Attock jail. Imran Khan had claimed that the camera breached his privacy, with the judge asserting in a report after an inspection of the prison facilities that the camera violated prison rules.

    Punjab Prisons Department, in response to Additional District and Sessions Judge Shafqut Ullah Khan’s report, stated that Khan is being provided with all the facilities in accordance with Pakistan Prison Rules, 1978.

    A new toilet with five feet high walls, a door, and toiletries have been constructed in his cell. The statement said Khan was also given a bed, pillow, mattress, table, chair, air cooler, exhaust fan, fruit, honey, dates, prayer mat, Holy Quran with English translation, several books for reading, a thermos with tea, newspapers and tissue papers.

    The statement further reads that five doctors have been appointed to provide medical facilities to Khan, “One doctor is present at all times on an eight-hour duty.” Special meals are given to Khan as per the doctor’s advice and with the approval of Punjab Inspector General of Prisons Mian Farooq Nazir. It further said the meals are served by a special team after a doctor’s inspection.

    The prisons department confirmed that Imran was allowed to meet his family on Tuesdays and lawyers on Thursdays.

    “CCTV cameras have been installed outside Imran Khan’s room for his and the jail’s security. More than 4,000 CCTV cameras have been installed not only in District Jail Attock but also in other jails of Punjab for security purposes,” the statement concluded.

    Caretaker Interior Minister Sarfaraz Bugti, while speaking on the Geo News show ‘Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath’, reassured the viewers that Imran Khan was allowed to meet visitors and provided facilities according to the prison class he had applied for. He said that the concerns raised in the inspection report, including those related to the CCTV camera, would be thoroughly investigated and addressed in accordance with the law.

    “We will ensure that all those facilities and class he (Imran) applied for and deserves as the ex-prime minister according to the law are provided to him. As far as I know, he has a bed and newspaper so the behavior with him will be according to whatever the law permits,” he said.

    Additional District and Sessions Judge Shafqut Ullah Khan visited Attock jail and compiled a report on 15 August, after his fortnightly inspection of the prison facilities, which was released on August 21. The report stated that Khan’s concern regarding the presence of CCTV cameras is genuine and is in violation of the prison rules 257 and 771.

    Rule 257 (Sanitary and bathing arrangements) of the Pakistan Prison Rules states: “Prisoners shall be granted adequate facilities for bathing and latrines, ensuring privacy.”

    Meanwhile, Rule 771 refers to “latrines,” specifying that “latrine floors should be elevated and frequently renewed. Each latrine must have a proper seat and partitions for the sake of privacy.”

    The judge further noted in his report that the superintendent of police present has provided assurance to address the grievance raised by the PTI chairman.

    The PTI’s official X (former Twitter) account tweeted in response to the report “Absolutely shameful how a national hero, former Prime Minister Imran Khan is being denied his fundamental human rights, and basic facilities he’s entitled to.”

  • Clash in Muzaffarabad jail due to unavailability of facilities

    A protest by the prisoners of Rara Central Jail in Muzaffarabad turned into a clash between the police and the prisoners on Saturday, reports Samaa News.

    The clash started when some prisoners turned violent and started a fight with the security personnel.

    The prisoners were protesting against the unavailability of facilities for the past few days. However, no casualty has been reported so far.

    The police summoned additional forces to keep the situation under control and started searching for the prisoners who initially started the fight.

    Last year, a clash was also reported in Adiala jail, Rawalpindi. The clash was between two groups that led to the transfer of 23 convicted and under-trial prisoners to other jails and the suspension of 11 jail officials, including two superintendents.

  • ‘A physically challenged girl doesn’t need anyone,’ three Pakistanis on solo trip to Egypt

    ‘A physically challenged girl doesn’t need anyone,’ three Pakistanis on solo trip to Egypt

    Pictures of three physically challenged Pakistani friends on a tour to Egypt are doing the rounds on social media. The three women are Tanzeela, Afshan and Zarghona. Tanzeela is from Lahore, Afshan hails from Peshawar and Zarghona lives in Quetta.

    Talking to BBC Urdu, Tanzeela said that she is physically challenged since her childhood. She says, “I have no legs below the knees and I have been in a wheelchair all my life,” but so far she has travelled 20 countries in a wheelchair.

    “I wanted to prove that a disabled girl doesn’t need anyone, she can be independent, she can make her own decisions,” she said talking about travelling alone.

     Tanzeela said, “Allah has created us all independent, but in our country, a differently-abled person is made dependant on others and he cannot go anywhere without the help of anyone, from restaurants to public washrooms.” She added that there are no facilities for physically challenged persons to go anywhere alone. They have to ask for someone’s help to go to the restaurants or public washrooms. There is no privacy and if there is no privacy, then your self-confidence is completely destroyed.

    “I thought I would take a step forward and set an example for other people.”

    The other friend, Afshan told BBC Urdu that 75 per cent of her body was paralysed because she was not vaccinated against polio when she was a child. Physiotherapy has made her healthy enough that she can now sit in a wheelchair.

    Sharing her feelings about travelling alone, she said that women with disabilities are often looked upon with pity. “It is a common notion about them that they cannot go anywhere so I decided to show the world that when you have the courage, then nothing is impossible.”

    Afshan said that we used to see girls travelling outside Pakistan but never saw anybody mentioning facilities provided to the physically challenged people who want to travel to other countries. “Nobody mentioned whether the conditions are the same in foreign countries as in Pakistan or better for people like us.”

    Zarghona was seven months old when she contracted polio and was unable to walk.

    “I have never travelled from Quetta to Islamabad or Karachi alone before this and I used to have some attendant with me. Even if I go somewhere in Quetta, I have to take someone with me,” she said.

    This is her first trip alone. She has previously travelled with different groups to three countries. “I was very excited to see Tanzeela and Afshan and I dared to travel alone,” she added. “If they can travel alone, why can’t I?”