Although the law enforcement agencies (LEAs), particularly the Pakistan Rangers-Sindh and the Karachi police, have so far arrested over 2,500 suspected criminals, including target killers, the authorities concerned seem perplexed regarding the safety and security of these detainees as the prisons in the province are overcrowded, Pakistan Today has learnt.
After the recent spree of targeted violence across the metropolitan, the government ordered the LEAs to launch an extensive crackdown against criminals in the city, which resulted in the arrest of hundreds of suspects, including alleged murderers and street criminals.
“While the surgical operation is under way across the metropolis and the criminals wanted by the police are being sent to jail on remand, the authorities do not have a proper plan to house these hardened criminals, besides ensuring their safety and security in prisons that are already overcrowded,” well-placed sources in the prisons department said.
There are presently 22 prisons in Sindh with a total capacity of 10,110 prisoners; however, these jails are housing around 14,000 prisoners – 12,119 of whom are under-trial, 2,271 convicted and 571 détenu (detained) – which clearly shows that the prisons are overcrowded, the sources added.
A new prison was supposed to be established for dangerous convicts on the vacant land of the Landhi prison.
However, despite the passage of over three years, the provincial government has proposed no plan for establishing this separate prison for hardened criminals, so the burden on the existing jails could be alleviated.
