Supreme Court pulls up states, Centre on prison overcrowding

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday pulled up the Centre and all the states for their failure to submit an action plan to reduce over-crowding of prisoners in jails and to augment the infrastructure so that there is more space available for each prisoner.

A Bench of Justices Madan B. Lokur and R.K. Agrawal, which had taken suo motu cognizance of the plight of prisoners in jails, however, as a last opportunity granted time to them till March 2017 for submission of the action plan.

In February this year the court had issued a series of directions for compliance. In today’s order the Bench said “We are a little distressed to note that even though this Court has held on several occasions that prisoners — both under trials and convicts have certain fundamental rights and human rights — little or no attention is being paid in this regard by the states and some Union Territories including the National Capital Territory of Delhi.

“Certainly fundamental rights and human rights of people, however they may be placed, cannot be ignored only because of their adverse circumstances.”

The bench said, “by our order dated February 5, we had drawn attention to over-crowding in prisons and had given directions which would assist in reducing the prison population and generally improve the living conditions of prisoners. We find that more than sufficient time has elapsed but the manual for juveniles in custody has not yet been prepared by the ministry of women and child development.”

The Bench directed the Centre to submit a composite ‘Jail Manual’ on or before  November 30. It also also directed the states and the inspector general of prisons to prepare a Plan of Action for reducing the prison population.