ISLAMABAD
\nMinister of State for Interior Muhammad Talal Badar on Tuesday informed the Senate that 19 prisoners escaped from police custody over the past four years, of whom 15 have since been rearrested.
\nResponding to various questions during Question Hour, he said disciplinary and criminal action was taken against 32 police officers for negligence and violations of standard operating procedures (SOPs). The minister said that four escaped prisoners were still at large, adding that efforts were under way to apprehend them.
\nHe said departmental action had been initiated against 32 police officials found responsible for lapses in custody management, with major punishments awarded to 17 officers. He said that 13 criminal cases had also been registered against police personnel whose negligence contributed to the escapes.
\nThe minister explained that investigations revealed failures in following SOPs related to the production of accused persons before courts and their transfer from one place to another, which led to the incidents. \u201cWherever negligence was established, strict action was taken without discrimination,\u201d he added.
\nReplying to a supplementary question by Senator Talha Mahmood, the minister clarified that there was no room in Islamabad for illegal or private detention. He said all arrested suspects were produced before courts within 24 hours, in accordance with the law. \u2014 DNA<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ISLAMABAD Minister of State for Interior Muhammad Talal Badar on Tuesday informed the Senate that 19 prisoners escaped from police custody over the past four years, of whom 15 have since been rearrested. Responding to various questions during Question Hour, he said disciplinary and criminal action was taken against 32 police officers for negligence and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":467966,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-529365","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-national"],"yoast_head":"\n