Death row prisoners in Punjab jails prove troublesome

Punjab government urges federal government to decide prisoners' fate to avoid any untoward incidents.

LAHORE: The presence of thousands of prisoners on death row in the provincial jails is causing security issues, the Punjab government told the Ministry of Interior in a letter on Monday.

According to the letter, there are more than 500 criminals whose pardon pleas had been rejected; however the federal government has still not decided their fate.

The letter further states that the executioners assigned for jails in Punjab had not hanged anyone during the last four years but were receiving salaries regularly.

According to a Supreme Court order, prisoners on death row cannot be cuffed but such prisoners in Punjab jails are disturbing the prison environment.

The Punjab government has requested the federal government to address this issue to avoid any untoward incident.