A life of death in Punjab’s jails every day
Maja Daruwala & Mrinal Sharma
(Operated Part of Report-article:)
With little medical care, no inspections, information clampdown, the most prisoner complaints, it is no surprise that Punjab’s prisons record the second highest number of suicides.
According to the National Crime Records Bureau, there are no psychologists, welfare officers or social workers in Punjab’s jails. Not surprisingly, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and the State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) receive the highest number of prisoner complaints from Punjab. But the disposal is one of the lowest at just 7 per cent and 21 per cent. In a decade, overall jail inspections have fallen by 58 per cent. Alarmingly, inspection visits by medical staff have gone down by 84 per cent. In the absence of any monitoring, prisoners are regularly sent to hospital for drug withdrawal symptoms.
As the recent controversy around “Udta Punjab” has highlighted, the state is waging an unsuccessful war against drugs. It is certainly losing it in jails. In July 2012, the warden of Faridkot jail was booked for allegedly buying over 900 psychotropic tablets for an inmate. Across Punjab, there is only one medical staff for every 342 prisoners. As many as 174 people charged under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS) have died in Punjab’s jails, 88 in 2014 and 86 in 2015. Clearly, being behind bars doesn’t mean being away from drugs.
It is not that people don’t know about the problem. In its 130-page report of 2014 on prison suicides, the NHRC points out that little has been done to improve the treatment of prisoners. In the absence of any ‘overt act of commission’, prison officials absolve themselves of any responsibility. However, the Punjab and Haryana High Court in “Amandeep vs. State of Punjab” has made it clear that people who have the care and custody of others cannot escape liability and doing so would amount to negligence.
http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/comment/a-life-of-death-in-punjab-s-jails-every-day/259808.html
Forwarded by
Balbir Singh Sooch-Sikh Vichar Manch
First Posted on July 2, 2016 at 1:02 PM (IST)
http://www.sikhvicharmanch.com/
https://www.facebook.com/balbir.singh.355
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 Who will answer the questions about Punjab’s Jails of Sikh Vichar Manch,
 Balbir Singh Sooch said
“1. Are Prisoners being killed or politically forced to commit the Suicide in Punjab’s Jails like  in  Police custody?
2. Are Prisoners being killed or forced to commit the suicide under politically created circumstances by mighty State power, money power’s cruelty including with the help of very cheap henchmen etc in Punjab’s Jails?” Sikh  Vichar Manch asked questions
http://www.sapulse.com/new_comments.php?id=13848_0_1_0_C