Open Forum
New Delhi, 14
September 2022
State Of Prisons
SOCIETAL REHABILITATION VITAL
By Dhurjati Mukherjee
Prisons are a requisite unit of the criminal justice system
of the country and require serious attention. Over decades while the conditions
prevailing in jails and the treatment meted out to prisoners has improved, it
is not good enough, rather alarming in some States.
It is encouraging to learn the government is contemplating
rehabilitating 90 per cent of prisoners in the country, as mentioned recently
by Union Home Minister Amit Shah. At the 6th All India Prisoners
Duty Meet at Ahmedabad, he said: 90% of those sentenced are prisoners whose
societal rehabilitation is very important, not only from the from a human point
of view but also from the point of view of law and order.
“View with which jails are seen in society needs to be
changed. Not every person jailed is criminal by nature, sometimes it’s
circumstances which force their involvement. But it is a necessary process to
keep society functional.” Stating the ‘process of punishment is very important’,
he opined that “it is also the responsibility of the jail administration that
if a person is not a criminal by nature or habit, then they should be the
medium to put back such prisoners into society.”
Those well-versed with the conditions in jails would put
the most common problems ailing these as overcrowding, poor health and
sanitation facilities, lack of hygienic food, discrimination and inequalities
among prisoners based on their religion and financial status, among
others. In fact, the States need to think over the issue of overcrowding
in prisons, as until overcrowding is not reduced, jail administration cannot be
improved.
Overcrowding needs to be tackled given there is a rise in crime
rate and that the trial and disposal of cases in courts is tardy. Quite often, even
without being convicted for the alleged offence during the pendency of the
trial, the prisoner lives crucial years of his/her life behind bars under mental
agony and emotional distress. Even if there is an acquittal, the years spent in
jail will never be back and as is said ‘justice delayed is justice denied.’
In fact, States should provide video conferencing facility with
the court in every district jail, to deal with this. And along with modernising
them, it is very important to equip them with technology, to make them safe
from the point of view of security and to have good living conditions for
prisoners.
Importantly, the ‘modern’ concept of prisons has already
given way to these being called ‘rehabilitation centres.’ But such centres need
to be set up in all States. Financial crunch and lack of space are perhaps the
biggest impediments to make this a reality. If prisoners can be categorised
with emphasis added to the rehabilitation of women and children, the government
can plan such centres over a five year plan. Plus, every effort must be made to
keep the undertrials, the most affected, in separate jails as they suffer
wretched years while on trial in a court of law and awaiting justice.
States need to relook at the model jail manual brought in
2016 replacing the old jail manual. The Home Ministry says that many remedial
points have been incorporated in this manual with emphasis for bringing in
basic uniformity in human rights, reform and rehabilitation, rules and
regulations for prisoners through computerisation. There are special provisions
for rights of women prisoners along with after care facilities, good scientific
manuals for prison inspection, rights of prisoners sentenced to death and
provisions for employees looking after prison reforms.
Delving deeper into the problem, the decline in morality
and rise of hatred, violence and jealousy may be attributed to the rise in
criminal and other related types of cases. The reduction in such cases calls
for education and awareness generation at all levels so that the incidence of
crime goes down. Simultaneously, the government has to allocate resources
towards improvement in the condition of prisons, jointly with the respective State
governments.
In 2018, the Supreme Court-appointed Justice Amitava Roy
panel on prison reforms. The committee submitted its report in February 2020
with major recommendations which included that special fast-track
courts be set up to deal with petty offences to reduce overcrowding and every
new prisoner be allowed a free phone call a day to his family
members to see him through his first week in jail. Perhaps, the Supreme
Court needs to pass directions to start the recruitment process against
vacancies in courts.
Though various organisations have studied the problems of
prisons and recommended laws to improve jail conditions, there is little follow
up. In many cases, prisoners come out of jails as hardened criminals more than
as reformed wrong doers willing to join the mainstream social processes. The
emphasis on correctional aspect needs to be strengthened through counselling
programmes by experts. The mindset of the prison staff has to undergo a
fundamental change and the management of prisons must be marked by discipline
and due regard to the human rights of prisoners. Prison reform is not just
about prison buildings, but what goes on inside them that need to be changed.
One is inclined to refer here to open prisons, which are
quite common in the Western world. In such prisons, there are no bars or no
uniforms. Instead of old style cells, there are rooms with beds, neat toilets,
kitchen, televisions, etc. Prisoners go for long walks, tend the garden, and
more importantly they are paid reasonably for their work. The advantage is that
it makes detainees better prepared to return to society. The management cost of
such prisons is 33 per cent lower than the traditional prisons.
In India, some States have studied the concept. Hoshangabad
in Madhya Pradesh has one such open prison built on 17 acres of land, where
convicts during the last few years of their sentence are transferred from other
prisons in the State to make them familiar with reformed environs. It is such type
of prisons that need to be set up in each State.
It would also be prudent if the government framed a
national policy on prisons and formed a National Commission on Prisons. As
mentioned, the policy should outline ways and means of sensitising the staff
about the need to treat prisoners as humanely as possible, ensure the holistic
development of prisoners like stress management, yoga, etc... The State and
judiciary must ensure that prisoners are only deprived of their liberty and
shouldn’t be exposed to any form of medical deprivation, unhygienic conditions,
bad or inadequate food and the State must fix accountability upon those who
fail to ensure the prisoners’ safety and dignity in incarceration.
At the same time, from the societal perspective it’s
important that a prisoner should come out as a reformed person, preferably with
familiarity of some skilled work and capable to carry out his livelihood
through that form of activity. The effect of prison life should pave the way
for his future. ---INFA
(Copyright, India News & Feature
Alliance)
|