Five conference centres to be set up to ensure witness protection during court proceedings

On the directives of Karachi Additional Inspector General of Police Ghulam Nabi Memon, Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Police Security and Emergency Service Division Maqsood Ahmed chaired a video link meeting regarding the establishment of a video conference system for the protection of witnesses and the production of under-trial prisoners (UTPs) during court hearings in Karachi.

According to a spokesperson, the meeting was attended by Commandant SSU Ghulam Murtaza Tabassam, SSP Court Police Captain (retd) Muhammad Asad Ali Chaudhry, SP Madadgar-15 Abdullah Memon, SP Jamshed Quarters Zubair Nazeer, SP Keamari Sumair Noor Channa, Director Information Technology Central Police Office (CPO) Tabasum Abbasi and other senior officials. The meeting was held via video link to follow the government’s instructions regarding social distancing.

The spokesperson said it was decided during the meeting that initially five video conference centres would be established in the city which would be later extended to ensure the protection of witnesses during court proceedings.

They conference centres would be linked with trial courts and prisons. Each model court and prison would have a model conference room for the recording of witnesses and production of UTPs via video conferencing under protocols approved by the Supreme Court.

The spokesperson said the software and hardware standards to be used in these centres would comply with the apex court’s standard operating procedures for video conferencing already in place for digital submissions of evidence.

The meeting also decided to take measures to ensure the data security. The software for video conferencing has been acquired from a globally renowned IT firm, Lifesize.

It was also decided that a meeting with all the stakeholders, including the South district and sessions judges, Malir district and sessions judges and the superintendents of the Karachi Central Jail and the Malir jail, would be convened to take them on board for the project.