conditions of Indian prisons और विकलांगों की स्थिति

 The long fight for accessibility, dignity in Indian prisons

While the general conditions of Indian prisons have always been abhorrent for all prisoners, those with disabilities face even greater challenges

इस आर्टिकल में 

1. कैदियों के जीवन की कुछ घटनाएं। 
2. Mulla Committee report on prison reforms .  
3. Rama Murthy vs State of Karnataka .  
4. क्या challenges विकलांग लोग फेस करते हैं  : 
5. कुछ अंतर्राष्ट्रीय कानून  जेल के विकलांग कैदियों के लिए. 
6. A lack of political will

कैदियों के जीवन की कुछ घटनाएं 

साईबाबा : cruelty faced by prisoners with disabilities 

story of Professor G.N. Saibaba is not just one of a travesty of justice but is also a glaring indictment of the cruelty faced by prisoners with disabilities in India. 

His bittersweet victory came in March 2024, when he was finally exonerated / free  after a decade behind bars. But just months later, in October 2024, he passed away.

during his incarceration

 

he described the challenges he had 

• with even basic tasks — using the toilet, 
• fetching water or having a bath — 
• due to the complete lack of wheelchair accessibility at the Nagpur Central jail premises. 
• His “anda cell” was so cramped / short  that he had to rely on fellow inmates to lift his wheelchair, which often led to injuries.

आँखों में एसिड डाल दिया जाना 

Prisons in India have been plagued by 

violence, abuse, and neglect. In 1979-80, the infamous “Bhagalpur blindings” incidents, where acid was poured into prisoners’ eyes, shocked the nation. 

सुधार की मांग 

Mulla Committee report on prison reforms 

1980s,

recommending extensive measures to improve prison conditions and administration. 

Stuffed prisons, appalling conditions

 Rama Murthy vs State of Karnataka 

In 1996, a Bengaluru’s Central Jail inmate wrote to the Chief Justice of India about deplorable / दुखद  prison conditions. 

Consequently, Rama Murthy vs State of Karnataka was a landmark case where the Supreme Court of India directed the government to address key issues such as : 

1. overcrowding, 
2. trial delays, 
3. torture, and 
4. neglect in prisons, in line with the Mulla Committee recommendations.

भारतीय जेलों की क्या स्थिति है ? 

Indian prisons house around 5.73 lakh people, far exceeding their capacity of 4.36 lakh, with many operating at over 100% or even 200% capacity (National Crime Records Bureau, 2022; Maharashtra Prison Department, 2024). 

conditions of Indian prisons और विकलांगों की स्थिति  

Prisoners with disabilities are easy targets for abuse and violence from other prisoners and prison staff. 

While the government lacks data on the number or the condition of prisoners with disabilities

 क्या challenges विकलांग लोग फेस करते हैं  :  

१ Father Stan Swamy 

who had Parkinson’s disease and was denied essential assistive items such as a straw and a sipper during his imprisonment, making it difficult for him to eat and drink.

२ rampant inaccessibility

A 2018 audit of the Tihar, Rohini, and Mandoli jails in Delhi conducted by the Nipman Foundation highlighted 

1. accessibility gaps 
2. unavailability of functional wheelchairs, 
3. inaccessible prison cells, toilets, mulaqat rooms, and recreational spaces, and water coolers located on floors which lacked accessible entries.

Rights that are only on paper

prisoners have the right to live in humane conditions with dignity

 

All prisoners in India have the right to equality, freedom and life and personal liberty, as enshrined in the Constitution, a principle upheld by the Supreme Court in multiple judgments. 

Notably, in Upendra Baxi vs State of U.P. (1983), the Court affirmed that prisoners have the right to live in humane conditions with dignity.

कुछ अंतर्राष्ट्रीय कानून  जेल के विकलांग कैदियों के लिए 

India has obligations under various international covenants 

As regards prisoners with disabilities, India has obligations under various international covenants for the protection of their rights. 

The Nelson Mandela Rules (2015) 

require prison administrations to make reasonable accommodations and adjustments for prisoners with disabilities. 

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities 

prohibits torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment for persons with disabilities. 

Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 

These obligations are reflected in the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 which requires the state to protect persons with disabilities from abuse, violence, exploitation, and the denial of food and fluids. 

The Ministry of Home Affairs’ Model Prison Manual (2016) 

also specifies dignified living conditions in prisons. In July 2024, the Ministry further issued the ‘Accessibility Guidelines for MHA Specific Built Infrastructures & Associated Services for Police Stations, Prisons & Disaster Mitigation Centres’ outlining detailed requirements to make prison facilities accessible.

A lack of political will

Many in society believe that cruelty to prisoners is deserved,  that undermines the political will for prison reforms. 

message to the state is clear:

compliance with the law, in spirit and in substance, is non-negotiable. Regardless of political will, all prisoners, including those with disabilities, are the responsibility of the government. 

Given that ‘prisons’ is a State subject, State governments bear the explicit responsibility to ensure that the rights of prisoners with disabilities are upheld. 

source the hindu