LAHORE: The Punjab Home Department has nominated eight prison officers to join a training course in the USA from May 22 to June 4.

Among those selected for the prestigious course is the Okara jail superintendent who was recently nominated in a murder case.

The officers are: Deputy Secretary Prisons Tasneem Ali Khan, superintendents of jails Mohammad Umair Ikram, Usama Salamat, deputy superintendents Attaur Rehman Awan, Behzad Iqbal, Allah Ditta, assistant superintendent Samina Azmat and assistant director Waris Ali Shahzad.

The US Embassy, Islamabad, has endorsed the nominees for training at the International Corrections Management Training Centre in Colorado, USA.

Through a letter addressed to the Punjab Home Secretary, the US State Department’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) says it supports the Pakistan government in its efforts to develop a more effective prison system.

“To this end, INL Office has arranged for the nominated officers to attend the Train-the-Trainers course at the ICMTC in Canon City, Colorado,” reads the letter.

(A copy of the letter and the FIR lodged against the Okara jail superintendent is available with Dawn).

Okara Jail superintendent Umair Ikram was nominated in a murder case lodged against him on April 12 along with deputy superintendent jail Rana Nasir, assistant superintendents Riaz Ahmad Kambo, Ashraf Kasuri and some other unidentified officials. The FIR was registered against them on the complaint of a retired police official from Pakpattan, Mohammad Ashraf.

He alleged in the FIR that the jail officers nominated in the case had killed his young son Asif Nadeem who was a condemned prisoner at Okara jail. Ashraf said they allegedly murdered his son for not paying extortion money. His son was tortured to death inhumanly as his neck was found broken, he said, adding that nine more visible marks of bruises were also found on various parts of his body.

Earlier, he said, his son was shifted from Sahiwal jail where deputy superintendent Habib Ahmad Sindhu subjected him to severe torture for not paying bribe.

As he filed a complaint against Habib Ahmad Sindhu and other jail officials for torturing his son, the prisons authorities shifted him (his son) from Sahiwal jail to Bahawalpur jail. Later, they shifted him to Okara jail.

Ashraf said that on April 11, just a day before his son’s death, he (Asif) had expressed his apprehension that he might be killed in the jail for not giving bribe to the staff. His son requested him (Ashraf) to bring this matter to the notice of the jail authorities and take measures to save his life, the complainant said.

Immediately, he said, he had informed the deputy superintendent jail Nasir about the apprehension of his son.

On the other hand, the jail superintendent and other officials denied the allegations levelled against the administration. They pleaded innocence when the family lodged a protest while placing the dead body outside the Okara Press Club. The officials said Asif was shifted to the jail hospital due to health complications. The jail officials said he was later shifted to the Okara DHQ city hospital where he died.

Punjab Prisons IG Mirza Shahid Saleem Baig declined to comment on the issue when this reporter sent messages and called him on his mobile phone to get his version.

Published in Dawn, May 19th, 2022