Patna Amid the ongoing debate over the release of 27 convicted prisoners in Bihar, several jails in the state have been found to be holding double or more inmates of their capacity.
The latest figures released by the state government’s home department underline the need to reduce the number of inmates in 59 jails, which currently hold around 62,000 inmates. The total capacity of 59 jails, including eight central jails, was 47,750, but there were 61,891 inmates, according to the data uploaded by the state government’s home department on its website till March 31.
This means that the jails have 30 per cent more prisoners than their capacity. The worst condition is that of Jamui District Jail, which has a capacity of 188 prisoners, but is housing 822 prisoners. That is, there are more than four times the number of prisoners in Jamui District Jail than the fixed capacity. According to Home Department sources, Jamui District Jail is one of the 38 jails that have double or more inmates than the sanctioned capacity.
Officials said they were only pointing this out to highlight the need for reforms in prison management. The release of gangster-turned-politician Anand Mohan Singh from Saharsa jail on Thursday drew strong criticism from the opposition. The state government recently amended the jail rules allowing early release of 27 convicts. Anand Mohan was allowed to be released from jail under the order of remission of imprisonment.
Anand was serving a life sentence for his alleged role in the murder of G Krishnaiah, a young IAS officer and the then collector of Gopalganj, during the funeral of Muzaffarpur gangster Chhotan Shukla in 1994. But the Nitish Kumar government on April 10 amended the Bihar Jail Rules, 2012, inter alia, to remove the clause which stated that ‘persons convicted of killing a public servant while on duty’ cannot be exempted from the term of imprisonment.
Former Director General of Police (DGP) of Bihar government Abhayanand told PTI-language, “It is true that the number of prisoners in the jails of the state is increasing day by day. I think that by speeding up the trial of cases and in some specific cases by providing bail to the accused after a certain period, the crowding of prisoners in the jail can be reduced. According to the latest data, there are 61,891 prisoners lodged in Bihar jails, out of which 59,270 are men and 2621 are women.
Among the Central Prisons in the State, Adarsh Central Jail, Beur (Patna) has 5,841 inmates against the sanctioned strength of 2,360. There are two and a half times more prisoners than the capacity in this jail. Overcrowding in Central Jail (Purnia) is 140%, Central Jail (Gaya) 130%, Shaheed Khudiram Bose Central Jail (Muzaffarpur) 120%, Central Jail (Motihari) 120% and Shaheed Jubba Sahni Central Jail (Bhagalpur) has 115 per cent more.
The Madhepura District Jail currently houses 742 prisoners, while its capacity is only 182. Bihar Law Minister Shamim Ahmed could not be contacted despite repeated attempts by PTI-language to know his reaction in this matter.
photo credit: Navbharat Times
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