Earthquake mein avsar, over 200 prisoners escape Karachi jail
The age-old saying "aapada mein avsar", meaning turning disaster into opportunity, found a real-life expression in Karachi's Malir Jail, where over 200 inmates used earthquake-triggered chaos as a ticket to freedom. As the ground shook in eastern Karachi on Monday night, so did the security of the city's Malir Jail. A large number of inmates cracked open a rare window of opportunity. The jail holds a significant number of inmates charged with drug-related offences, with many of them dealing with psychological problems.advertisement"At least 216 inmates fled" as the jail authorities got busy in earthquake-related evacuations, Jail Superintendent Arshad Shah told Geo TV on Thursday morning. One inmate reportedly died in the chaos, while some, including jail staff, sustained injuries.Karachi has experienced 16 mild earthquakes since Sunday, with several centred near Malir. Late on Monday night, two back-to-back mild tremors, measuring 2.6 and 2.8 on the Richter scale, struck northeast of Malir at a depth of 40 kilometres.
Videos circulating on social media captured the sound of heavy gunfire allegedly coming from areas near Malir Prison, while other footage appeared to show inmates fleeing along nearby roads, according to a report in The Dawn.TOTAL 135 INMATES STILL AT LARGE: KARACHI JAIL SUPERINTENDENTJail Superintendent Shah stated that the jailbreak took place after inmates from Circles 4 and 5 were evacuated from their barracks as a precautionary measure during the earthquake.advertisement"More than 600 prisoners were outside their cells at the time. Amid the chaos, 216 managed to flee," Geo TV quoted Shah as saying. He added that over 135 prisoners remain at large, and search efforts are still underway.Initially, the police told the Karachi-based newspaper Dawn that the prisoners had broken through the jail's outer wall, which had been weakened by multiple low-intensity tremors.However, Sindh's Home Minister, Zia-ul-Hasan Lanjar, according to a report on GeoTV, said the escape occurred when 700 to 1,000 inmates gathered near the main gate during the evacuation. Amid the chaos, around 100 prisoners managed to force the gate open and escape.Lanjar, termed it as one of the most serious jailbreaks in recent years.ONE INMATE DEAD IN KARACHI JAIL CHAOSHe also suggested possible staff negligence and announced that a committee, including police and officials from other agencies, would be formed to investigate the incident.Inspector General of Sindh Ghulam Nabi Memon, during his visit to the prison, informed the media that Malir Jail holds a significant number of inmates charged with drug-related offences, many of whom are dealing with psychological problems.According to the report in Geo TV, rescue and jail officials said that three Frontier Corps personnel and one jail staffer were injured during the chaos, and one inmate reportedly died.advertisementOne of the recaptured inmates, Siraj, told the reporters that the earthquake tremor sparked panic within the prison."When the quake hit, everyone started breaking the gates. Many ran off. I was arrested in a weapons case and went into hiding after escaping," Geo TV quoted saying.
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