In the scheme of the Constitution of India, prison is State subject, governed by the Prison Act, 1894 and Prison Manuals of States and Union Territories. It is, therefore, the primary responsibility of the States and Union Territories. Despite several steps taken by the Union of India, prisons across India continue to be mired in overcrowding, shortages of funds, unhygienic conditions, sub-human state, various types of malpractices, leakages of revenue and so on, violating with impunity the human rights of the inmates in flagrant disregard of the Constitutional postulates. A look at the state of prisons indicates that Indian prisons rile in oppressive regime with no semblance of rule of law based system of democratic governance where human rights should be reigning supreme.
Currently, number of prisons in the country is 1374 with authorized capacity of 307052 inmates with over four lakh prisoners. There are four types of jails comprising Central Jails, District Jails, Sub-Prisons and Open Prisons, all overcrowded. Apathy of States and Union Territories towards human rights of prisoners and their failure to decongest jails packed with a minimum of 150 percent to in one case 609 per cent has come under the scanner of the Supreme Court, with 30 per cent vacancies (i.e. 22,548 posts) out of a total 177, 230 prison personnel. Despite the Apex Court having taken cognizance of the grave prison situation across the country, there has not been perceptible prison reforms, much less action plan by the States and Union Territories.
Prison reforms were suggested by Mulla Committee in 1983, Kapoor Committee in 1986, Iyer Committee in 1987 and a Parliamentary Committee on Empowerment of Women in 2001. All these committees were appalled by pathetic, unhygienic and awful conditions of the average prisons. These committees had recommended replacement of dilapidated prisons, improvement of living conditions, provision of medical/psychiatric services, vocational training, gainful employment, educational programme, improvement in the conditions of women prisoners, their segregation, provision of free legal aid, speedy trial, humane and dignified treatment of prisoners.
According to the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), culprit States and Union Territories for overcrowding of prisons are Andhra Pradesh with 212 jails followed by Assam with 31 jails, Chhattisgarh with 30 prisons, Gujarat with 27 prisons, Himachal Pradesh with 14 prisons, Jharkhand with 29 prisons, Karnataka with 102 prisons, Kerala 54, Madhya Pradesh 123, Maharashtra 150, Meghalaya 5, Punjab 26, Rajasthan 126, Sikkim 2, Uttar Pradesh 70, Uttarakhand 11, West Bengal 59, Union Territory of Dadra & Nagar Haveli 1, and National Capital Territory of Delhi 12 prisons.
The MHA maintains that the Centre has been providing regular guidance to State Governments in prison management through various advisories from time to time. Besides, the Union Government has taken several administrative measures for decongesting jails across the country, which include establishment of fast track courts, creation of additional capacity of prisons through the Scheme of Modernization of Prisons on cost sharing basis, launch of National Mission for Justice Delivery and Legal Reforms. Besides, concept of plea bargaining through Section 265 of Criminal Procedure Code (Cr.PC) and insertion of a new Section 636-A in Cr.PC fixing maximum period for which under trial prisoners can be detained, are some other initiatives to reduce overcrowding in jails. Latest Model Prison Manual 2016 was also issued by the MHA to all States and Union Territories in May 2016 for allowing plea bargaining in Cr.PC to help the States and Union Territories address overcrowding of prisons.
Despite all such measures, nothing has gone home to the States and Union Territories. System of governance continues to be oppressive. Majority of the prisoners are victims of frame-up by Police. Bulk of the prisoners are from poorer strata of society like scheduled castes, scheduled tribes, backwards and minorities. Democratic system of governance is only election centric. All penal laws continue to be oppressive with a clause that no action shall be taken in good faith against public servants charged with implementation of criminal laws, so much for human rights and sovereignty of our people. Political class as such has developed vested interests in not allowing police reforms and criminal justice system reforms resulting in continuance of miserable plight of our prisons. There is rampant corruption in jail administration and judicial system with a collusive culture to protect each other.
Unless there are administrative reforms, police reforms, judicial reforms, local bodies reforms and the governance system is made accountable to the people, India will continue to be a dark patch in the comity of nations with islands of opulence and ghettos of miseries galore, relevant to prison reforms as well!
- M.Y.Siddiqui