On December 6, as many as 12 under-trial prisoners, all having criminal record, managed to escape from the Model Town district courts’ lockup, giving a bad name to the Lahore police and sending panic wave among citizens.

The incident occurred in the presence of heavy contingents of police on the courts’ premises.

The episode not only highlights the grave security lapses on the part of the police but also exposes the loopholes present in the security arrangements for the prisoners as they are escorted to the courts from the prisons and back. Furthermore, the easy escape of hardened criminals shows that the local police lack thorough training and adequate skills.

Shortly afterwards, Rao Sardar Ali Khan, the Punjab Police inspector general, suspended the Prisoners Escort DSP and the other duty staff from service. He also directed the CCPO to ensure the arrest of the absconders at the earliest. The city was placed on high alert, and additional police force was dispatched to the crime scene. Besides, police pickets were set up in different parts of the city, and barriers at entry and exit points were fortified. The idea was to apprehend the fleeing prisoners.

By the time of filing of this report, the police claimed to have arrested six of the jail inmates who had escaped from their custody. The rest were still on the run. Those arrested were identified as Ahmed, Haider, Faisal, Pervez, Javed and Ahsan. The Lahore Operations SSP spoke of conducting raids to arrest the remaining five absconders.

Initial reports suggest that the inmates brought down a wall of the lockup washroom, and used the bricks to break open the central gate of the court. Earlier, they are believed to have started rioting when the police (allegedly) refused to allow the relatives of some of the prisoners to bring them food and other gifts.

Eyewitness accounts and videos showed that some of the police personnel on the scene acted like spectators. Others made an insufficient effort to check the prison break.

Shortly afterwards, Rao Sardar Ali Khan, the Punjab Police inspector general, suspended the Prisoners Escort DSP and the other duty staff from service. He also directed the CCPO to ensure the arrest of the absconders at the earliest. The city was placed on high alert and additional police force was dispatched to the scene. Besides, police pickets were set up in various parts of the city, and barriers at entry and exit points were fortified.

CCTV footage shows the prisoners abusing the cops and flinging various furniture pieces at them. They are also seen picking up sticks and tube lights to use as weapons. One of the police officials was injured in the fracas.

The prisoners were kept in judicial custody on the premises of the district courts, before they could be presented in the courts for hearing of cases against them. Witnesses said a fight apparently broke out among them. This prompted a policeman to open the lockup and inquire about the matter.

Sadly, those on duty failed to move swiftly at that critical point.

A police officer has revealed, on condition of anonymity, that minor scuffles among prisoners are routine. He says the security staff should be on the vigil round the clock.

He claims that the police personnel often accept petty bribes from prisoners. These vary from a pack of cigarettes to a cell phone.

The officer recalls how a similar situation the day before was controlled by a brave police officer on duty.

Replying to a question, he says that the morale of the police is “at the lowest ebb these days. A show of gallantry has landed many a police officer in trouble in recent times. Neither the state nor the police high-ups support them once something bad happens in the line of duty.”

Talking to TNS on how to prevent such incidents from happening in the future, SP Aftab Phulawan makes some interesting points. “In Pakistan, the prisoners are taken to the courts on two accounts — either to record their statements, or for extension of their judicial remand in accordance with law.

“Technology has transformed the system’s contours,” says the SP. He adds, “In many developing countries, thanks to the latest technology, the prisoners are no longer brought to the courts. Instead, there is a vast network of cameras in prisons. They can record their statements before the courts using these if required.”

He says the practice is followed in Pakistan in anti-terrorism courts only. “The courts record statements in jails using cameras. This system can easily be extended to proceedings in other courts.”\

The writer is a senior journalist and can be reached at ahsanzia155@gmail.com