IHC to weigh freeing over 1,300 prisoners on bail

Since the COVID-19 was declared pandemic, a number of have released prisoners

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) will take up on Friday (today) a case pertaining to release of 1,362 under trial prisoners (UTPs) incarcerated at Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail in view of novel coronavirus – COVID-19 – outbreak.

The IHC on Thursday issued notices in this regard to Islamabad administration and the Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP). Islamabad deputy inspector general police, deputy commissioner, health secretary, director general health, the AGP and advocate general will appear before the court today.

The IHC bench headed by Chief Justice Athar Minallah will hear the case that seeks to release the UTPs accused of crimes with less than 10 years of imprisonment.

The court notes the Adiala Jail has a capacity of 2,174 prisoners but it is overcrowded with 5,001 prisoners. Of these, 1,362 are UTPs facing various cases in Islamabad East and West courts.

It says why these prisoners should not be released on bail on personal guarantee in order to reduce risk of the contagious infection inside prisons.

Since emergence of the disease which has now been declared a ‘pandemic’ by the World Health Organization (WHO), a number of countries across the world have released prisoners.