President Asif Ali Zardari and Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif on Sunday have granted relief to the prisoners in the province’s jails keeping in view the holy month of Ramazan, releasing 28 of them while reducing the sentences of others by 90 days. The officials announced that 2,367 inmates across the province benefited from the reduction in their sentences. However, they added that the prisoners involved in cases of drugs, adultery, robbery, kidnapping, rebellion and espionage would not receive this concession. Similarly, this reduction in punishment has not been applied to the prisoners involved in financial embezzlement and damage to the national exchequer. It applies to the male inmates who are 65 years of age or older and served one-third of their sentence as well as the female prisoners who are 60 years of age or older and served one-third of their jail time. The concession also applies to the female prisoners who are accompanied by children as well as juveniles, who are below the age of 18 and served one-third of their sentence. Read also: President approves remission for prisoners According to the officials, nine inmates were released from six prisons across the Rawalpindi region – six from Adiala Jail, two from Jhelum and one from Gujrat. Besides, 642 prisoners in all the six jails of Rawalpindi region – Adiala, Gujrat, Attock, Jhelum, Mandi Bahauddin, and Chakwal – received the benefit of the special amnesty and their sentences were reduced. Punjab IG Prisons Mian Farooq Nazir said the prisoners confined in the jails of the province and their families expressed their happiness on the announcement of the reduction of the sentences. He added that they expressed their gratitude to the president, premier and Punjab chief minister for this move. Earlier this month, the federal government, with the approval of PM Shehbaz, announced a significant sentence reduction for prisoners across the country. Read: CM Maryam announces release of 155 prisoners According to a notification, the government has given a two-year remission to convicted prisoners in their jail terms. It is customary to grant relief to prisoners during the holy month of Ramazan. Last year, the then president Dr Arif Alvi announced a 90-day reduction in the sentences of prisoners on the occasion of Eidul Fitr when the holy month concluded. The number of inmates who benefited from the president’s special amnesty stood at 2,610. A total of 39 prisoners were released from Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail while 415 had their sentences reduced. According to a statement from the President's House, Alvi approved the reduction on basis of Article 45 of the Constitution. Article 45 mandates that the president holds the “power to grant pardon, reprieve and respite, and to remit, suspend or commute any sentence passed by any court, tribunal or other authority”.
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