Overflowing prisons

THERE has been a surge in the number of prison inmates in the recent time, with the escalation of political violence and intensification of law and order operations. In the last 37 days alone, 13,000 people have been arrested in 700 cases, with 8 percent of cases being of a political nature. 

Reports suggest that prisons are now accommodating on average three times as many inmates as their actual capacities, leading to severe shortage and mismanagement of food supply, sanitation, health and other facilities. Even though the Jail Code dictates that each prisoner is entitled to 36 square feet as living space in jail, that same space is now being shared by at least three inmates. It is deplorable they should be denied humane treatment, irrespective of the severity of their crimes. 

Even in ordinary times, the condition in the prisons is dire. The number of under trial prisoners is almost double the number of convicts, with many ending up serving more time than their eventual sentences just waiting for their trials to be over. The recent arrests of an overwhelming number of political inmates further complicates the situation, raising the question of how long they must wait, and in what conditions, till the trials are completed. 

The current situation may well lead to a breakdown of an already unwieldy prison management. Without systematic prison reform, more budgetary allocation for prisons is unlikely to benefit the inmates. Meanwhile, the government should consider if sweeping arrests is a sustainable solution to addressing political violence.