CJP visits JPMC: Sharjeel, Shahrukh sent back to jail

Headed by the Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar, a three-member apex court's bench on Saturday came down hard on Inspector General Prisons Nusrat Mangan, asking him as to why the high profile inmates were routinely taken to hospitals. It ordered the shifting of Shahrukh Jatoi - the prime accused in the Shahzaib murder case - and former provincial minister Sharjeel Inam Memon to jail. Justice Faisal Arab and Justice Sajjad Ali Shah were the other two members of the bench hearing the case at Supreme Court's Karachi Registry. Mangan submitted a report and informed the judges that Jatoi was shifted to Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre after he made a complaint of cardiac pain. Jatoi had now been discharged from the hospital, he added.
The CJP remarked that Jatoi was only discharged from JPMC when the apex court took notice of the matter. He asked JPMC executive director Dr Seemin Jamali if the murder accused was operated upon at the JPMC, adding that there were different laws for the poor and rich.
The Chief Justice expressed displeasure over the IG jails when he informed the court that Jatoi was currently enjoying C-Class facilities in the jail. How the death-row convict is getting C-Class facilities, the CJP inquired from the jail authroties. He also asked to explain why Jatoi was not moved to 'Kalkothri' (Solitary confinement). The bench directed the authorities concerned to submit a detailed report about Jatoi's health.
The court directed Mangan to place before it comprehensive report for informing it how many prisoners were shifted to hospitals in the province. Justice Nisar remarked that the trial court had ordered his treatment at the prison, directing the jail authorities to send the PPP leader to jail forthwith.
Agencies add: Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar on Saturday came down hard on doctors who had prepared a medical report for Shahrukh Jatoi, the prime suspect in the Shahzeb Khan murder case. The Chief Justice even made an unannounced visit to the Jinnah Post Graduate Medical Centre (JPMC) to see for himself how the hospital is running its affairs.
Hours later, he also ordered that former provincial minister Sharjeel Inam Memon must be sent back to jail from a medical facility where he was being kept in. An accountability court in Karachi had on Thursday indicted Memon and 11 others in a corruption case pertaining to the award of advertisements through the abuse of power. Shahrukh Jatoi's report - prepared by the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC) and read out in court by the Inspector General of Sindh's Prison Police, Nusrat Magan - had clearly not satisfied the CJP, who questioned the standards of the medical institution and decided to make an unannounced visit of the facility.
Taking great exception, he said reports showed the situation at hospitals is far from satisfactory. He expressed his annoyance over the smell that he encountered during his visit to hospital's emergency department.
The CJP asked health secretary Dr Fazlullah Pechuho to explain as to when the situation at government-operated hospitals would get better. Pechuho replied the government has been providing funds to the hospitals to improve healthcare and other related facilities. CJP Nisar asked the health secretary to swear on affidavit that the JPMC and other hospitals are well-equipped and have all healthcare facilities.
The chief justice expressed dissatisfaction over performance of Jinnah Medical and Dental College and issued notice to officials of the college to submit their comments. Justice Nisar had last week taken notice of Jatoi's shifting to the JPMC from Karachi's Central Jail following an alleged deterioration in his medical condition just a week after the apex court set aside bail granted to him by the Sindh High Court.
The young Jatoi underwent a medical check-up for a "health-related complaint" and was "advised" hospitalization. However, there was no word from police and health authorities as to the nature of the illness being faced by Jatoi - who is in his early 20s. The Executive Director of the JPMC, Dr Seemin Jamali, had said at the time that the information was not being divulged "to protect the patient's privacy".
The Chief Justice was further irked when he was told that Jatoi is being kept in Category C jail. "Why is a death sentence suspect being kept in Category C jail?" Justice Nisar asked, and summoned a report from the jail administration on how many prisoners have been transferred to hospitals.
During his visit to JPMC, CJP went to emergency, neurosurgery, radiology departments and reviewed the healthcare facilities and state of cleanliness at one of the biggest tertiary care hospital of Sindh province. He also inquired about the health of the patients admitted in different wards of the hospital. Executive Director and In-Charge Emergency Department, JPMC Dr Seemin Jamali, briefed the chief justice about healthcare facilities being provided to those who brought to emergency and other departments. She also decried the shortage of staff, state of old buildings and construction of new surgical building to accommodate more patients in health facility.
Later, on the directives of the Supreme Court, the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) lawmaker Sharjeel Inam Memon and Shahrukh Jatoi, the prime accused in student Shahzaib Khan murder case, were shifted to prison from hospital.