Court Boycott In India Blocks Prisons and Homes
The ongoing boycott of courts by advocates in Tamil Nadu has resulted in prisons and juvenile homes getting overcrowded. This story from The Hindu.
While the number of inmates lodged in prisons across Tamil Nadu has increased by at least 10 per cent, police are sending accused persons to remand only when it is imperative. A few juvenile offenders lodged in the Saidapet sub-jail here complained of inordinate delay in getting bail on Wednesday and threatened to commit suicide by jumping from trees. The incident occurred around noon. They alleged congestion in the sub-jail due to overcrowding. After prolonged negotiations, jail authorities agreed to shift some of them to the Puzhal central prison …
The process of releasing remand prisoners on bail has come to a standstill due to the boycott of courts by advocates. The number of inmates in juvenile homes was also steadily on the rise, the sources said.
“Since there is no release (on bail or on completion of sentence) in the last few days, there is overcrowding in some prisons. While the capacity of the Saidapet sub-jail is 80, we have now lodged 160 juvenile offenders there. About 30 of them were shifted to the Puzhal central prison on Wednesday evening,” Director-General of Prisons R. Natraj told The Hindu. He said a majority of prisoners were either remand prisoners or undertrials.
A comprehensive plan to enhance security inside jail premises across West Bengal has been approved by Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee,