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Synopsis

A Bench of Justice MR Shah and Justice Krishna Murari, on Friday, granted more time to the Supreme Court Committee on Prison Reforms, headed by Justice Amitava Roy, former Judge of the Supreme Court to submit its report making suggestions on the inhumane condition and protection of rights of prisoners of 1382 prisons. The Court granted a period of 4 months to complete the inquiry.

The pertinent issue was a suo-moto matter concerning the issue of inhumane conditions in 1382 prisons and the protection of the rights of prisoners.

The Court took note of the several facts that were put forth. First it took the two years of Covid 19 into consideration, that delayed the process. Further that some of the States and UTs did not submit information on Juveniles in Correctional Homes. It further noted that the Presiding Officer of the Committee is not well, because of which the inquiry could not be completed. 

It was alleged that some of the States were not cooperating in the inquiry, to which the Court then asked to give full particulars of such States to the Committee. 

Earlier, a bench of Justice L Nageswara Rao and Justice BR Gavai had directed the Supreme Court Committee to submit its report within a period of 6 months.

On September 25, 2018, the bench had constituted a Supreme Court Committee on Prison Reforms to give its recommendations on the following issues as its Terms of Reference:

1. Review the implementation of the Guidelines contained in the Model Prison Manual 2016 by States and Union Territories (UT's).
2. Review the implementation by the States and UTs of the recommendations made by the Parliamentary Committee on Empowerment of Women in its report tabled in the Parliament titled ‘Women in Detention and Access to Justice,’ and the advisory issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in this regard.
3. To review the two training manuals for prison personnel prepared by Bureau of Police Research & Development (BPR&D), ‘Training Manual of Basic Course for Prison Officers 2017’ and ‘Training Manual of Basic Course for Prison Warders 2017’ and forwarded to States and UTs.
4. Review the recommendations made in the report of the Ministry of Women and Child Development in collaboration with the National Commission for Women and the National Law University Delhi on ‘Women in Prisons’.
5. Review the recommendations made in the report of the National Commission for Women on ‘Inspection of Prisons/Jails/ Custodial Homes housing Women’.
6. Review the implementation by States and UTs of the Guidelines contained in ‘Living conditions in Institutions for Children in Conflict with Law’ prepared by the Ministry of Women and Child Development (MWCD) and the Model Rules and Procedures prepared by the MWCD under the Juvenile Justice (Care & Protection of Children) Act, 2015 and Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Model Rules, 2016.
7. Review the status of the implementation of the guidelines and advisories issued by MHA to the States and UTs, etc.

 

Case Title: RE- INHUMAN CONDITIONS IN 1382 PRISONS