PESHAWAR: Inmates rioted inside the central jail here on Monday as the prison police tried to shift members of two groups to other jails in the province.

The police fired tear gas shells at rioters bringing the situation under control.

Official sources told Dawn that around 20 “hardcore militants” including 10 each from two rival groups had been kept in the jail and they would fight every time they came across each other.

They added that the prison administration, in order to address the issue once and for all, decided to send members of one group to the Mardan Central Prison and the other’s to the Kohat District Jail.

KP Inspector General of Prisons Irfan Mehsud told Dawn that as jail officials began separating those prisoners and asked them to board prison vans, the latter offered resistance and rioted.

IG (prisons) says situation under control

He said the regular police force was called to help prison police to quell the disturbance.

“The police fired tear gas shells [at rioters] and immediately contained the situation. Now, everything is under control,” he said.

The prisons chief said hardcore criminals would be shifted to Mardan and Kohat jails “as soon as possible.”

A report prepared by authorities on the incident, a copy of which is available with Dawn, read, “An untoward situation took place inside the Peshawar Central Prison and went out of control at 15:30 hours in 4-Ghat cells and the administrator promptly responded into it by calling to the guards as well as Police’s Quick Response Force and then situation remained under control at 16:30 hours.”

It highlighted the relocation of the rival prisoner groups to the Mardan and Kohat jails to maintain peace on the premises.

“For the time being, the situation [in Peshawar jail] is fully peaceful, and all security heads are directed to remain vigilant,” the Special Situation Report read.

It added that the Peshawar Central Prison had the capacity to keep 3,000 people but around 3,850 inmates, including hardcore militants, were kept there.

The report said those militants were detained in separate barracks.

In the past, the jail also had Dr Shakil Afridi, who was held on the suspicion of helping Americans track Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad district. However, he was shifted to Punjab’s Sahiwal jail in 2018.

APP adds: Chief Justice of the Peshawar High Court Justice Musarrat Hilali paid a surprise visit to the Peshawar jail.

It was her second visit to jails in the province. She went to the Mardan District Jail on April 8 and identified issues and directed authorities to address them, according to an official news release

During the visit to Peshawar jail, the CJ found juvenile persons to be kept in a “small and unhygienic barrack and down with skin diseases.”

She directed the jail superintendent to ensure the shifting of inmates to a place with all basic facilities. The CJ asked the judicial magistrate to visit the prison for early decision on minor cases.

She observed that many under-trial prisoners were kept in a small barrack with space too little to sit properly.

The prisoners complained about poor management of food and allied facilities.

The CJ showed displeasure at the mismanagement and directed authorities to take corrective measures without delay. She also visited the women’s barrack and found it to be in good hygienic condition.

Published in Dawn, April 11th, 2023