SC laments sorry state of affairs for death convicts in jails, asks govt to revisit outdated laws

Supreme Court of Pakistan has said observed that the death row prisoners are treated inhumanely in the country as even the basic rights of the inmates are not taken care in their death cells, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

In a nine-page judgment written by Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, the apex court highlighted the prolonged and inhumane conditions faced by death row inmates. The court said many prisoners remain in death cells for years, sometimes even decades, due to delay in the judicial process and subsequent execution of sentences.

The ruling came during the hearing of a criminal review petition filed by Ghulam Shabbir, a convict who has been imprisoned for 34 years, that included 24 years spent in a death cell. The SC commuted the death sentence of double murder convict Ghulam Shabbir to life imprisonment who have already served more than life imprisonment.

Justice Mandokhail observed that Pakistan's prison laws have become outdated and the government has not paid attention to replace them.

The Supreme Court of Pakistan has urged both federal and provincial governments to reconsider policies and enact or amend existing laws to align with international standards, aiming to minimise the duration of death row prisoners' detention in death cells.

Justice Mandokhail emphasised that the delays in executing death sentences effectively punish convicts twice for the same crime, which is neither permissible under Pakistani law nor under the injunctions of Islam.

Supreme Court’s Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhel said all death convicts use same washroom while death convict are kept in 9x12 cells.

A death convicts are allowed to come out of death cell more than one hour a day. The SC judged observed that cconditions of the death cells are worse than other jail. In the death cell, the convict is kept in isolation and under close supervision. The death penalty does not mean inhumane treatment of the criminals.

The Supreme Court said the United Nations has made the Nelson Mandela Rules on the rights of prisoners, Pakistan is also a member of the UNO therefore the Government should take immediate steps regarding death row prisoners.

The judgment further called on the government to update outdated prison laws and ensure that they are implemented in a manner that respects the fundamental rights of all prisoners, particularly those on death row. In view of the judgment, convicted person Ghulam Shabbir will be released from jail after 34 years of imprisonment as he completed his life sentence.

Reporter: Amanat Gishkori