KARACHI - The law enforcement agencies Monday carried out a grand search operation in Central Jail Karachi and recovered millions of rupees and illegal stuff from the prisoners. According to details, the law enforcers recovered over 100 cell phones from the inmates in an unusual recent joint operation by paramilitary Rangers, frontier constabulary and police.
The authorities thought better to conduct such major operation inside the jail after the two under trial prisoners (UTPs) belonging to the banned sectarian outfit - Lashkar-e-Jhangvi escaped from the jail on June 13.
This is not a first time when these security agencies conducted grand operation in jail. The security agencies have being launched such operations after each and every major activity inside the jail or outside like the last major operation was conducted by the Rangers and other forces inside the jail in which hundreds of cell phones and other equipment were recovered following the deadly terrorist attack on the then chief justice of Sindh High Court Justice Maqbool Baqar on June, 2013 as even the security agencies also claim to have recovered a cell phone allegedly used to plan the attack on the Justice Baqar.
The Rangers Bhittai Wing Sector Commander Brigader Shahid while briefing to the media men at Central Jail, Karachi after the operation informed that this search operation was launched following the escape of the terrorists.
“Rangers, Pakistan army, police and other law enforcement agencies were used to conduct rehearsals to combat any emergency situation in the routine and this operation is a part of it,” the brigadier said.
“The intelligence agencies have been warned by the time of threats to jail security.” He said that all the barracks belonging to political, religious and banned outfits inmates were searched during the operation and seized a huge cache of unauthorized materials from the inmates which is against the jail manual.
Scores of television sets, LCDs, water dispensers, mobile phones, tape recorders, air-coolers, knives and pilers and other electronic devices were found inside the jail. Not only this, but a cash Rs35,52,337 was also recovered. Sharing the recovery, the Brigadier said that 18 deep freezers, 449 televisions, 163 LCDs, 102 mobile phones, 82 speakers, 22 heater, 3 DVD players, 10 scissors, 30 blankets, 400 packets cigarettes, 45 knives and daggers, 46 memory cards and 50 remote controls.
“Some other devices had also been installed to make the jammers in the jail ineffective, so that the prisoners’ phones were functional in particular timing and places,” the Ranger official explained.
The recovery of cell phones and other equipment continuously despite on its banned in jail has placed a big question mark on the jail authorities. The question still exist that how these cell phones and other banned stuffs were being reached inside the jail despite of the high level security inside and outside the jail premises. A CTD official investigating the Under Trial Prisoner (UTPs) escape said that not a needle cannot reach inside the prison without permission of jail staff and recovery of the cell phones inside the jail confirms the involvement of the jail authorities from top to bottom.