LHC directs for prison reforms and three women jails in Punjab

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) in its written judgment on prison reforms has directed to the Punjab government for introducing jail reforms in the province.

Justice Abid Aziz Sheikh in a detailed verdict of 26 pages on a public interest petition suggested that the establishment of women jails at Lahore, Faisalabad and Rawalpindi has been necessary to protect the rights of female prisoners.

The court has directed the authorities to take steps to reform the inmates into civilized members of the society.

“Around 3200 inmates of Islamabad jurisdiction have been imprisoned in Rawalpindi jail, this congestion in the jail can be addressed with establishment of a prison in Islamabad,” the bench suggested.

The court also directed for specialized training of the jail staff for better treatment to death row, drug addict and mentally ill prisoners.

The court has also directed for transfer of mental patients to Punjab Institute of Mental Health and construction of separate wards for mentally ill prisoners.