Islamabad : National Commission for Human Rights (NCHR) has recommended an amendment in the law to give a timeline of 60 days for the submission of a complete challan of under trail prisoners (UTPs), except as otherwise extended by the court.
The recommendation was made in a letter written by the NCHR Member Punjab Nadeem Ashraf to the Chief Secretary, Government of Punjab. The letter says that Section 9 (6) of the Punjab Criminal Prosecution Service (Constitution, Function and Powers) Act 2006 allows submission of interim report or challan in case of incomplete investigation.
“However, no period has been specified for submission of the final report or challan, which results in delays in the trail, at times for months. This amendment is expected to expedite the trails by providing a specific timeline for submission of complete challan in the court,” states the letter.
The letter also contains minutes of the meeting held on April 16, 2025 where the issues of under trail prisoners due to delay in investigation and trail were discussed extensively. The meeting was held under the Chairmanship of NCHR Member Punjab Nadeem Ashraf and was attended by DSP Legal for Punjab Iqbal Najam, Deputy District Public Prosecutor Naveed ul Zafar and Deputy District Public Prosecutor Muhammad Naeem Tahir.
The meeting discussed the issues regarding the overcrowding of the under-trail prisoners (UTPs) across jails in Punjab. Participants of the meeting emphasised that as per Pakistan’s commitment under UN International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the due process of law shall be enforced on all citizens.
Chair of the meeting stated that 72 per cent of the inmates in prison in Punjab were under-trial whereas, as per the Mandela Prison Rules, the ratio should not accede 20 to 25 per cent. It was also highlighted that more than 320,=
-7000 FIRs are registered annually in Lahore. Only 48 criminal courts are functioning in the division which makes it unfeasible for the trials to commence in timely manner.
Similarly, the issue of interim 20 was also discussed in the meeting regarding delays in trials besides the overburdened forensic labs which has been seen creating additional challenges for the under-trial prisoners. The participants were informed that there are 53 probation officers for a population of over 125 million in Punjab, indicating an alarming and a serious human resource constraint as regards effective probation system.
DSP (Legal) Najam Iqbal apprised the participants regarding the monthly meeting of criminal justice coordination committee, which were being convened under the chairmanship of district and session judge, where a list is provided to police of the cases involving non-submission of challans. It was further stated that a digital tracking system is being developed and is in its final stages for the submission of challans.
Other recommendations given by the participants included adoption of Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) system in criminal cases, incorporation and implementation of video trails to expedite and facilitate trails, presence of complainant at the time of submission of challans so that the latest development in the cases i.e. compounding or compromise, if any may come into notice of court.
Talking to ‘The News’, Chairperson NCHR Rabiya Javeri Agha stressed the need to increase the number of prosecutors as well as deployment of a dedicated prosecutor per police station to improve coordination and case handling. “Additionally, measures such as the issuance of diary number or receipt upon challan submission from the prosecutor to investigation officer, establishing more state-of-the-art forensic laboratories at all divisional headquarters of Punjab and expansion of medico legal facilities for timely issuance of Medico-legal Certificate (MLC) to cater to the issue of over burdening of doctors needs to be taken to improve the situation,” she said.
