Examining Conjugal Rights of Inmates under Pakistan’s Legal and Shari’ah Framework

Abstract

The main aim of the study is to evaluate the Islamic and legal aspects of conjugal right of prisoners in the Pakistani system of penitentiaries. Despite the fact that imprisonment implies the limitation of individual freedom, inmates still have the right to a system of human entitlement in the form of international, regional and domestic legal policies. This paper examines the basic Sharia principles and underlying constitutional, statutory and judicial perspectives in a bid to find out the degree to which the Islamic law recognizes marital intimacy among the incarcerated. The study employs a qualitative research design through the assessment of constitutional requirements, prison policies, international standards, and human rights reports. The results suggest that the formalization of conjugal rights is important not only in saving human dignity and effectiveness of rehabilitative interventions but also in ensuring family cohesion. Additionally, the use of marital visitations is an effective intervention in reducing institutionalization of homosexuality and the spread of sexually oriented diseases among the prisoners.