Pakistan's Adiala Jail to build family suites for married prisoners

Rawalpindi, Sep 1 (ANI): Pakistan's Adiala Jail, where the trial of Mumbai terror suspects are going on, has acquired 87 acres of land to build family suites for married prisoners in compliance with a decision of Federal Shariat Court (FSC) that married prisoners can maintain contacts with their spouses.

Jail Superintendent Saeedullah Gondal said acknowledgment of fundamental rights of prisoners would be beneficial to eliminate old jail culture.

He said Adiala Jail authorities had acquired 87-acre land and the Punjab government would provide funds to build family suites, separate jail for women and juvenile prisoners.

The Daily Times quoted him as saying that jail authorities were in favour of providing conjugal rights to married prisoners because it would have positive impact on their personalities.

Gondal said that over 6000 prisoners were locked in Adiala Jail including 200 women and juvenile prisoners, claiming they had been given various opportunities to bring a positive change in their personalities.

He said the jail authorities had set up a factory that manufactured carpets, iron rods, hospital beds, kit boxes and others things. "And the prisoners who worked in the factory are paid on monthly basis," he said.

"Women inmates have facilities to play board games and badminton in the jail," he said, adding there were table tennis courts for juvenile prisoners and foreigner prisoners could play football in the jail ground.

"We have established a rehabilitation centre for drug addicts and they have been locked in separate barracks to lessen their contacts with other inmates," he said.

He said the prisoners had been provided food according to a special diet program. (ANI)