Imran to be moved to Islamabad jail

Prison likely to be inaugurated next month

ISLAMABAD:

The first phase of new state-of-the-art Model Jail in Islamabad's Sector H-16 has been completed, with preparations for its inauguration scheduled from November 1 to 10.

Fifteen hundred prisoners, including former prime minister Imran Khan, are expected to be shifted from Rawalpindi's Adiala Jail to the facility in the initial phase.

According to jail sources, the initial plan envisaged transferring 2,000 inmates, but the number has now been reduced to 1,500. The first phase includes three completed barracks, a 35-bed mini-hospital, a mosque and a kitchen.

Sources said the second phase of the project will continue and is expected to be completed during the first quarter of 2027, between January 1 and March 31.

The new jail has been constructed on 90 acres in Sector H-16 of Islamabad.

The National Highway Authority has also been directed to upgrade roads and access routes connecting the facility with the motorway and Kashmir Highway. Preparations for a PC-I and the design of a major interchange near the jail have also begun.

The project, initially estimated to cost Rs3.5 billion, has exceeded Rs20 billion over four years, largely due to rising construction material costs, according to the report.

Under the first phase of relocation, only undertrial prisoners whose cases are pending before courts will be transferred from Adiala Jail.

Convicted prisoners will not be included in this initial movement, allowing undertrial inmates to be produced before courts directly from the Islamabad facility under enhanced security arrangements.

The transfer of convicted prisoners is expected to begin in 2027, with February mentioned as a possible starting point, sources said.

Jail sources further indicated that former prime minister Imran Khan could be shifted from Adiala Jail to the new facility between November 20 and 30. A special ward for him has reportedly been completed, while installation of its closed-circuit television surveillance system is in its final stages.

Adiala Jail sources also confirmed that lists of Islamabad-based prisoners and undertrial detainees had been finalised and preparations were under way for their transfer in November.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi has already inspected the new facility and directed the authorities to meet the October 31 completion target, according to the report.

The Model Jail is being designed with a range of facilities, including a sports ground, library, mosque, imambargah and church. Separate wards have also been established for women and children.

The project is intended to provide a modern correctional facility for Islamabad, while easing the burden on Adiala Jail and enabling undertrial prisoners from the federal capital to be housed closer to the courts where their cases are being heard.