HYDERABAD, Jan 10: Lack of awareness among people and non-implementation of human rights laws have resulted in exploitation of this lot on a huge scale.

The rising number of karo-kari cases, overcrowding in jails and killing of innocent people have become a norm because majority of victims are unaware of their fundamental rights, Chairman of the National Assembly's Standing Committee on Human Rights, Riaz Ahmed Fatiyana said on Tuesday.

Speaking at a press conference, he said that the Kharotabad killings, rising trend in karo-kari cases and forced labour should serve as an eye opener to people and they should fight for their rights.

Poor prisoners, he said, are interned beyond capacity in jails and influential landlords take force labour from people owing debt to them. All this should be brought to an end by instilling in people, a sense of belonging. Not only people of rural areas but their urbanite neighbours too, are unaware of the basic rights, thestate has given them, Mr Fatiyana said.

Though, the Assembly has legislated laws against karo-kari, forced marriages and non-distribution of landholdings among females, yet these are not implemented in letter and spirit, he said.

Minorities, especially non-Muslims too, are deprived of their constitutional rights even though Quad-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah had made it clear that Hindus, Christians, Sikhs and other minorities would enjoy equal rights in Pakistan, Futiyana said while calling upon the religious leaders to play their role by bringing a change in the mindset of their followers.

The NA committee leader was also bitter over the denial of legal rights to women and children and demanded the state to execute its responsibility by ensuring education to each and every child. A law exists in the statute books about access to information but this law is also not being implemented.

He said that the Committee had taken notice of last year's killings of seven prisoners in Hyderabad's Central jail andwould summon its superintendent and the then DPO and DCO to Islamabad while report of judicial inquiry too, had been sought.

He felt pity over the innocent people for being nominated in FIRs and languishing in jails.

However, he claimed that not a single political prisoner was confined in any of the country's jails.

It is noticed that complainant and accused, in majority of karo-kari cases, are relatives and enter into settlement at a later stage Fatiyana said and disclosed that a law to make state, the complainant in such a case was on the anvil.

Rights of prisoners are guzzled for they are forced into labour, even on gazetted holidays while women too, face harassment at the hands of their male colleagues and employers, he said and hinted at legislating a law to stop this menace, once for all.

The committee has also taken notice of people getting killed in accidents and gas cylinder explosions and murder of non-Muslim population.