Negligence?: Three elderly inmates die in Hyderabad Central Jail

HYDERABAD:

Three elderly convicted prisoners have died in Central Jail, Hyderabad, over the last three days. Jail officials claim all three prisoners died due to natural causes. Sources, however, said that their lives could have been saved had they been provided medical assistance on time. 

Muhammad Urs Chang alias Mawali, 65, was the latest victim in the series of deaths. The murder convict, who hailed from Tando Muhammad Khan district, died of cardiac arrest, according to the medical superintendent (MS) of the jail hospital, Dr Pir Manzoor Ali.

The other two deceased, Ghulam Rasool Maachi from Hyderabad and Dhani Baksh from Benazirabad, passed away on June 13 and June 14, respectively. Both were reportedly in their 60s.

According to jail officials, the inmates’ health deteriorated during the night and they could not be provided medical assistance until morning due to the non-availability of doctors at the hospital. All three were shifted to Civil Hospital, Hyderabad, where they breathed their last.

The MS refuted claims that negligence on the part of the jail hospital had caused the deaths. He disclosed that Maachi’s health was fragile and had been undergoing treatment since the last few weeks. The other two had died of sudden cardiac arrests, he added.

The acting jail superintendent, Nadir Ali Panhwar, also played down the occurrence of any negligence on the part of the jail administration or doctors. According to him, no inquiry in this regard has been ordered.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 17^th, 2014.