Pakistan: Gujrat jail appeals for release of 100-year-old prisoner.

Mehdi Khan, a 101-year-old prisoner serving a life sentence in Gujrat District Jail in Punjab, appealed to the jail superintendent, Inspector General of Punjab Prisons Mirza Shah Saleem Baig and the Punjab government for immediate release.

Mehdi Khan has said in his petition that he has lost his sight and is unable to walk properly and needs extreme care for normal life.

It may be recalled that Mehdi Khan was convicted in a murder case in 2006, later acquitted by a trial court in 2009 but the decision was challenged by the opposition in the Lahore High Court.

Mehdi Khan was sentenced to life imprisonment by the Lahore High Court in 2019 after completing 100 years of his life.

He was later transferred to prison where he is serving his sentence while suffering from various ailments, so he has requested immediate release due to ill health and longevity.

The senior prisoner had applied to the Lahore High Court for early release under Section 146 of the Jail Manual, under which the Superintendent could recommend release to any prisoner in view of the nature of the crime in case of longevity, infirmity or illness. Is.

According to the law, the application will be submitted through the Inspector General, along with the medical officer's suggestions. In such cases, the Inspector General will seek the opinion of the Medical Board headed by the Director Health Services and the Board will give its opinion. It will be sent to the court through the Inspector General.

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Mehdi Khan's lawyer Hamza Haider told Dawn that the prison administration had submitted a petition to the court stating that the prisoner was ill and over 100 years old.

He said that the law department of the jail had also said that they would provide medical facility to the inmate.

The lawyer said that the court had directed the Punjab Prisons Department to provide medical facility to the inmate and disposed of the application.

The court order said that the application for non-compliance was rejected by the Punjab Home Department and said that the Home Department had received Mehdi Khan's application along with the report of the Medical Board and a decision would be taken on it. ۔

Gujarat District Jail Superintendent Malik Liaqat Ali said that they were providing all possible facilities to the inmate and Aziz Bhatti was still undergoing treatment at Shaheed Hospital.

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"This is the third time that a prisoner has been transferred to a local hospital for treatment and a report prepared by the medical board has been submitted to the court," he said.

The prison superintendent said that according to the law, "there is no provision for early release of a prisoner but it is up to the affected party to grant pardon".