When people talk about corruption in Pakistan, they often point fingers at police stations and courts. Rarely does anyone talk about what happens after a person is sent to jail.
Today, I want to speak about Punjab’s prison system, a place where dignity dies, hope fades, and justice is quietly buried.
Let me say this clearly:
Jail is not reform. Jail is punishment, even for those who haven’t been proven guilty.
A Business Built on Human Misery
Punjab’s prisons officially have space for around 32,000 inmates, yet nearly 75,000 people are currently locked inside. Out of these:
- About 14,000 are convicted prisoners
- Around 250 are on death row
- The remaining tens of thousands are under-trial prisoners, people who have not yet been proven guilty
These are political detainees, victims of false cases, and ordinary citizens trapped in slow trials.
They are legally innocent.
Yet they suffer the most.
Inside jail, nothing is free.
You pay to meet your loved ones.
You pay to send food.
You pay to receive medicine.
You even pay to avoid abuse.
Before a detainee is “settled,” jail staff demand bribes, sometimes as little as Rs. 1,500–2,000, but the message is clear: pay, or suffer.
This is not law enforcement.
This is extortion.
Overcrowded Cells, Inhuman Conditions
Prisoners are packed into tiny rooms known as “chakkis.”
A typical chakki is about 10 by 10 feet, yet 8 to 10 people live inside it, sleeping, eating, praying, and even using the toilet in the same space.
There is no privacy.
No hygiene.
No dignity.
Some wards don’t even allow prisoners to visit the mosque.
Food is often half-cooked. Curries are mostly water. Basic necessities are treated like luxury items.
The government spends approximately Rs. 900 per prisoner per day, totaling nearly Rs. 6 billion annually in Punjab alone.
And yet, prisoners live like animals.
So where does the money go?
Psychological Torture and Silent Abuse
Jail doesn’t just imprison the body, it crushes the mind.
If you don’t have political backing or financial strength, you become an easy target. Fellow inmates harass you. Staff intimidate you. Complaints only make things worse.
There are even allegations that certain substances are mixed into prison food, causing long-term sexual weakness and psychological damage.
Whether everyone believes this or not, one thing is undeniable:
People leave jail broken.
Not rehabilitated.
Broken.
The Superintendent: King of the Prison
Inside every jail, there is an unquestioned ruler, the Superintendent.
When he visits, walls are freshly painted. Prisoners are ordered to sit silently with folded hands. Everyone is warned:
Do not complain.
If money is sent to a prisoner from outside, nearly half disappears before reaching their account. What remains buys goods at inflated prices inside the jail.
Even financially stable inmates feel poor.
And those who have nothing?
They depend on others to survive.
Innocent Until Proven Guilty, Only on Paper
Many people inside Punjab’s jails never imagined they would see prison walls.
They were earning, supporting families, contributing to society.
Then came a false case.
A political arrest.
A delayed trial.
Now they wait. And wait. And rot.
Islam teaches justice. The Constitution promises dignity. But in jail, both are absent.
We often say, “May Allah save us from police stations and courts.”
But we forget the worst place of all.
May Allah save us from jail.
A Call for Reform
Prisons should not be torture chambers.
Under-trial prisoners should not be treated like convicted criminals.
Even those found guilty do not deserve humiliation, violence, or systemic abuse.
We urgently need:
- Faster trials
- Independent jail monitoring
- Transparency in prison finances
- Accountability of jail officials
- Humane living conditions
- Protection of basic human rights
Justice does not end at conviction.
And humanity should never end at prison gates.
If we truly want a better Punjab, a better Pakistan, we must start by fixing the darkest corners of our system.
Because a society is judged not by how it treats the powerful, but by how it treats the powerless.