SC orders arrest of 35 absconders on parole

Eight-page dossier flays government on failure to respect rules and regulations.

KARACHI:

The Supreme Court has directed the trial courts concerned to issue non-bailable warrants against the 35 under-trial prisoners, who were released on parole by the Sindh government, despite their involvement in heinous crimes.

The Sindh police chief and home department have also been ordered to ensure the arrest of these absconding prisoners and produce them before the courts concerned, where cases against them have been pending for a long time.

The directives come as part of an eight-page dossier issued on Saturday after the apex court concluded its hearing two days earlier on the implementation of suo motu case on Karachi violence. Justices Anwar Zaheer Jamali, Khilji Arif Hussain, Sarmad Jalal Osmany, Amir Hani Muslim and Gulzar Ahmed had heard the case at the SC Karachi registry.

During the hearing, the court was told that the Sindh government has over the years released 193 convicted and 35 under-trial prisoners from different prisons of the province. The bench had expressed its utter shock when it came to know that most of the suspected criminals were involved in heinous crimes like murder and kidnapping for ransom and had been absconding since 2003 - after they were released on “temporary” parole.

The judges observed that the government had continued releasing prisoners in a “shabby” manner until at least 2005. The court had also expressed its concern over the official claims that the prisoners “good behaviour” inside the prison was the only criteria to release them on parole.

From the documents given by the parole officers, the court observed that many other legal requirements such as serving mandatory periods of their sentences, condition of being first offender, etc, were flouted while considering the cases.

Even after years, the whereabouts of the under-trial prisoners are unknown, which apparently means that they did not appear before the trial courts during their release on parole and may have been declared absconders, the bench stated in its observations.

“We are clear in our mind that the government or any other authority under it cannot exercise powers under any provision of law parallel to the powers conferred on the judicial officers,” noted the apex court. “[These] 35 under-trial prisoners apparently were not granted bail and were involved in heinous offences and once they were refused bail, the government under the garb of parole extended such concessions in order to defeat the judicial process of administration of justice.”

The judges further wrote that neither the Act of 1926 nor the rules allow any authority to release under-trial prisoners in this manner.

On one side, a hue and cry is raised by the government about the law and order situation on the pretext of terrorism while on the other hand, the government is releasing convicts and suspected criminals, the court observed.

“These instances clearly reflect the mala fide conduct of the Sindh government in dealing with the poor law and order situation in Sindh, particularly Karachi, which, if continued, will never bring peace and rest in Karachi and Sindh,” the judges remarked.

In its short order, the five-member larger bench directed all the trial courts concerned to issue arrest warrants against the absconding under-trial prisoners with further directives to the home department and IGP to ensure their arrest.

The Sindh home secretary and prison, police and parole officials have also been ordered to submit their respective detailed replies to justify such “illegal and highhanded” actions of the provincial government.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 4^th, 2012.