Maryam Nawaz Recalls Solitary Confinement, Says She Ate Jaggery from Prison Floor During Medical Emergency
Islamabad: Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz has shared details of her imprisonment, alleging that she and her father, former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, were denied basic medical care and fundamental human rights while in custody.
Addressing a prison reforms conference, Maryam Nawaz said she was kept in solitary confinement for 24 hours a day and described its severe psychological impact. She said that during the early days of her imprisonment, a prayer mat and books were her only companions, but prison authorities later stopped her from accessing books as well.
She said she and Nawaz Sharif were imprisoned at the same facility, adding that her prison cell had inadequate living conditions, with the washroom located adjacent to the sleeping area and insufficient space even to spread a prayer mat. She also claimed that basic sanitation facilities were lacking.
Recalling a medical emergency, Maryam Nawaz said her blood sugar level dropped to a dangerously low level one night. Despite repeatedly calling for help and knocking on the prison door, she said no one responded.
According to her, she noticed a glass bottle containing jaggery in the cell. As she attempted to pick it up, the bottle slipped from her hands, shattered on the floor, and scattered the jaggery among broken glass pieces. She said she had no option but to collect and eat the jaggery from the floor to stabilize her condition.
Maryam Nawaz also spoke emotionally about her late mother, Kulsoom Nawaz. She said that while she and her father were in prison, her mother was critically ill in a London hospital, but they were not allowed to speak to or meet her. She added that when Kulsoom Nawaz passed away, both she and Nawaz Sharif were behind bars, noting that the day of her speech coincided with her late mother’s birthday and that her memories remain vivid.
