Context:

• Imprisonment of Delhi’s Chief Minister raised curious questions about the special facilities made available to him in the Tihar prison complex.
• These “special facilities” such as access to medication for diabetes, a pen, paper, a television, medical staff, books, are at best classified as “basic”, not “special”. 
• This idea brings up the following question ‘Why are other prisoners denied such basic amenities and what are the other issues in prisons which affect the dignified life of a prisoner?’

Issues faced by prisoners in Indian prisons:

• Lack of Basic Amenities: Many prisoners, especially those from weaker socio-economic backgrounds, could not access basic necessities such as medication for illnesses, pens, paper, books, and television.
• Overcrowding: Indian prisons suffer from severe overcrowding, with national average occupancy rates of 131.4%(Prison Statistics India 2022 by National Crime Records Bureau). Some central jails in Delhi have occupancy of more than 300%.
  • 75.8% of all the inmates are undertrials.
  • This leads to a host of problems including limited access to facilities, increased stress on resources, and compromised living conditions.
• Unhygienic Conditions: Overcrowding exacerbates issues of hygiene, with prisoners living in unclean environments that can lead to health problems.
• Custodial torture is one another problem faced by the prisoners. This had even led to the death of many prisoners.
• Unequal Access to Legal Rights: Many prisoners, particularly those who cannot afford good legal representation, struggle to secure permissions from the court for basic necessities. This results in a disparity in access to rights based on socio-economic status.
• Lack of Rehabilitation Services: Prisons often fail to provide adequate rehabilitation and reformation services to inmates, which are essential for their successful reintegration into society as law-abiding citizens.
• Normalising Inhumane Treatment: There is a societal tendency to normalise inhumane and degrading treatment of prisoners, perpetuating a cycle of suffering rather than viewing prisons as institutions for rehabilitation and reform.

Government Measures:

• Model Prisons Act 2023: Prison is a State subject and so the Union Government has come up with this model to act as a framework for prison management. The salient features of this act are,
  • Provision for security assessment and segregation of prisoners, individual sentence planning,
  • Grievance redressal, prison development board, attitudinal change towards prisoners.
  • Provision of separate accommodation for women prisoners, transgender, etc.
  • Provision for use of technology in prison administration with a view to bring transparency in prison administration.
  • Provision for video conferencing with courts, scientific and technological interventions in prisons, etc.
  • Provision of punishment for prisoners and jail staff for use of prohibited items like mobile phones etc. in jails.
  • Provision regarding establishment and management of high security jail, open jail (open and semi open), etc.
  • Provision for protecting the society from the criminal activities of hardened criminals and habitual offenders, etc.
  • Provision for legal aid to prisoners, provision of parole, furlough and premature release etc. to incentivise good conduct.
  • Focus on vocational training and skill development of prisoners and their reintegration into the society.
• Legal aid for Undertrials: The State Legal Services Authorities have established Legal Service Clinics in jails, which provide free legal assistance to persons in need.
  • These clinics have been established to ensure that no prisoner remains unrepresented and legal aid and advice is provided to them. 
  • The National Legal Services Authority had prepared a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for Under-Trial Review Committees, which has been circulated by MHA to all States/Union Territories for making best use of the same and providing relief to prisoners.
  • National Legal Services Authority also holds awareness generation camps in jails to generate awareness about availability of free legal aid, plea bargaining, Lok Adalats and legal rights of inmates, including their right to bail, etc.

It is time that we view prisons and prisoners from a lens of reformation and rehabilitation. Prisons are not the “end” but the beginning for those who find themselves entangled with the criminal justice system, and seek to set a path on the road to reform.