Sarabjit Singh (File pic)
Lahore:
Sarabjit Singh, an Indian man who is on death row in Pakistan, is in coma after he was attacked by two fellow prisoners with bricks and a knife at the Kot Lakhpat Jail in Lahore.
Mr Singh has reportedly suffered head injuries and is expected to undergo surgery soon at the state-run Jinnah Hospital.
Mr Singh was reportedly attacked when he was being moved from one cell to another in the Lahore jail. He was initially taken to the hospital within the prison, but after his condition worsened, he was taken in an ambulance to the Jinnah Hospital.
"It is deplorable that this attack took place. The Indian High Commission has sought consular access. As soon as we get a response, we will act," Preneet Kaur, Minister of State, External Affairs, told NDTV. Two officials from the Indian embassy have rushed to Lahore from Islamabad. Pakistan foreign office in a statement has said it will probe the incident.
Syed Akbaruddin, spokesperson, Ministry of External Affairs, tweeted, "Pakistan responds to #India's Mission abt Sarabjit - Medical condition is serious but doctors r working round the clock to save him."
Sarabjit's sister Dalbir Kaur told NDTV, "I had told everybody he is not safe. This is a conspiracy. The attack was pre-planned." (Read: Sarabjit Singh's life was at threat after Afzal Guru's hanging, says his sister)
After the incident, four officials including the jail warden were suspended.
The Kot Lakhpat jail currently has some 17,000 prisoners though its official capacity is only 4,000. There have been instances in the past of prisoners being killed within the prison. Indian national Chamel Singh died in the same jail under suspicious circumstances.
Authorities had tightened Mr Singh's security after the execution of Afzal Guru, who was convicted of involvement in the 2001 terror attack on the Parliament.
Sarabjit was convicted for alleged involvement in a string of bomb attacks in Punjab province that killed 14 people in 1990. His family however says he is the victim of mistaken identity and had inadvertently strayed across the border in a drunk state.
His mercy petitions were rejected by the courts and former President Pervez Musharraf.
Mr Singh has reportedly suffered head injuries and is expected to undergo surgery soon at the state-run Jinnah Hospital.
Mr Singh was reportedly attacked when he was being moved from one cell to another in the Lahore jail. He was initially taken to the hospital within the prison, but after his condition worsened, he was taken in an ambulance to the Jinnah Hospital.
"It is deplorable that this attack took place. The Indian High Commission has sought consular access. As soon as we get a response, we will act," Preneet Kaur, Minister of State, External Affairs, told NDTV. Two officials from the Indian embassy have rushed to Lahore from Islamabad. Pakistan foreign office in a statement has said it will probe the incident.
Syed Akbaruddin, spokesperson, Ministry of External Affairs, tweeted, "Pakistan responds to #India's Mission abt Sarabjit - Medical condition is serious but doctors r working round the clock to save him."
Sarabjit's sister Dalbir Kaur told NDTV, "I had told everybody he is not safe. This is a conspiracy. The attack was pre-planned." (Read: Sarabjit Singh's life was at threat after Afzal Guru's hanging, says his sister)
After the incident, four officials including the jail warden were suspended.
The Kot Lakhpat jail currently has some 17,000 prisoners though its official capacity is only 4,000. There have been instances in the past of prisoners being killed within the prison. Indian national Chamel Singh died in the same jail under suspicious circumstances.
Authorities had tightened Mr Singh's security after the execution of Afzal Guru, who was convicted of involvement in the 2001 terror attack on the Parliament.
Sarabjit was convicted for alleged involvement in a string of bomb attacks in Punjab province that killed 14 people in 1990. His family however says he is the victim of mistaken identity and had inadvertently strayed across the border in a drunk state.
His mercy petitions were rejected by the courts and former President Pervez Musharraf.
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