Indian death row prisoner Sarabjit Singh had spoken of a threat to his life from a fellow prisoner after the execution in India of Afzal Guru but Pakistani authorities failed to provide him adequate security, his lawyer said today. “Sarabjit told me and a CID (Crime Investigation Department) official after the execution of Afzal Guru that a prisoner in Kot Lakhpat Jail had issued death threats. I brought this to the knowledge of prison authorities and the Punjab Home Department but they did not beef up his security,” Awais Sheikh, Sarabjit’s counsel, told PTI. The execution earlier this year of Guru, convicted of involvement in a 2001 terrorist attack on the Indian parliament, had triggered protests across Pakistan. Several jihadi groups like the Lashkar-e-Taiba had pledged to avenge Guru’s death. When Chambail Singh, another Indian prisoner in Kot Lakhpat Jail, died after allegedly being assaulted by prison staff in January, Sheikh filed an application in the Lahore High Court seeking stringent security for Sarabjit. “The jail authorities are responsible for the attack on Sarabjit. Where were the jail staff when he was attacked?” Sheikh said. PTI
