Some convicts to be freed on January 26: Dr G Parameshwar

Bengaluru: The state government may announce the premature release of some more convicts, who comply with the Supreme Court guidelines, on Republic Day. Home Minister G. Parameshwar during his impromptu visit to the Central Prison at Parapanna Agrahara on Friday assured the convicts that the government is working on the premature release of some of them, who qualify under the guidelines that have been laid down by the apex court.

The home minister greeted the prison staff and inmates on New Year and even distributed laddoos to around 4,000 prisoners and prison officials. “It was a very good gesture on his part to visit the prison and meet the condemned convicts and see for himself what the prison lacks,” said a prison officer.

While addressing a gathering of around 250 convicts, who pleaded the minister to help them with their premature release, Dr Parameshwar said that the government will announce the release of some of them on January 26. The State had recently released 252 convicts on September 17 last year after careful scrutiny.

Dr Parameshwar later visited the prison hospital and even had food from the prison mess. The prison hospital lacks doctors on duty. He met women prisoners in their wards and listened to their
heartrending stories. “He went to the high security VIP cells to find out if the VIP prisoners, who are kept in these cells, were given exclusive treatment and was shocked to see bare walls. The minister was under the impression that the cells had television sets and air conditioners as is often reported in the media,” said an official source.

What ails the prison

• The Central Prison at Parapanna Agrahara like other Central prisons is not only overcrowded, it is poorly staffed and lacks the basic infrastructure.
• Lack of manpower is the biggest problem, which is plaguing the prison department.
• The Central Prison, which has a capacity to house around 2,000 prisoners, has a floating population of around 4,000 inmates.
• The hospital system needs a thorough revamp. There are five doctors for 4,000 prisoners. There are no women doctors to attend to women prisoners.
• There are no psychiatrists in any of the prisons in the state, where majority of the inmates suffer from major mental illnesses and disorders and need sustained psychiatric treatment and supervision.

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