The Crisis Within - Unveiling The Immediate Need For Prison Reforms In India

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THE CRISIS WITHIN: UNVEILING THE IMMEDIATE NEED

FOR PRISON REFORMS IN INDIA

Sevandhi M., M.L, Assistant Professor of Law, The Central Law College, Salem Shalini S, BA., LLM, Assistant Professor of Law, The Central Law College, Salem

ABSTRACT

Prison is an integrated part of criminal justice system. The concept of the Prison as a place where treatment takes precedence over custody is said to be the foundation for Prison Reform. The Prisoners rights shall be respected and everyone is treated with almost life and dignity. The goal of Prison gradually shifted from simply deterrence to rehabilitation. This resulted in the abolition of some of the most heinous punishments and the establishment of a system of rewards for excellent work and behaviour in the form of remission, sentence reviews, wages for prison labour, parole, furlough, among other things. The severe shortcomings of the current incarceration models have been made clear by overcrowded institutions, inhumane conditions, high recidivism rates, and systemic injustices, barrack segregation and work allocation based on caste.

The study emphasizes the pressing need to switch from punitive to restorative and rehabilitative models of justice by looking at historical changes, current problems, and global best practices. The effects of incarceration on underprivileged communities, the financial burden of maintaining obsolete prison systems, and policy in enacting significant various committees reports and their suggestion about prison reforms are all covered in the paper. Keywords: Prison, Reform, Overcrowding, Rehabilitation, Reports.

1.INTRODUCTION

Prison is known by different names in different countries like ‘Correctional Facilities’, ‘Detention Centres’, ‘Jails’, ‘Remand Centres’. Prisonization symbolizes a system of punishment and a sort of institutional placement for convicts and undertrials during the period of trial. There is no society without crime and criminals. That is why prison is indispensable for every country. One of the main roles of civil society is to punish the criminals. A prison sentence is one way to accomplish the goal of punishment. As societal attitudes about prisons and prisoners evolved, so did prejudices about the places are evolved. Over time, the goal of incarceration evolved from deterrence to reformation1. Recently the Supreme Court in the case of Sukanya Shantha v. Union of India (2024) ruled that caste-based discrimination within Prison is unconstitutional.

This research paper makes the case that prison reform is a moral and social requirement in addition to a legal and administrative one.

2. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

Ø To analyse about the issues in our prison system and need for prison reforms in India. Ø To study about the various committee reports and its suggestions on prison reforms.

3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

This research paper is entirely based on secondary data sources. The authors mostly relied on secondary data such as books, acts, bills, research articles, governmental websites, newspaper articles, various committee reports which was related to the Prison reforms.

4. CONCEPT OF PRISON

The Online Oxford English dictionary defines prison as, “A building to which people are legally committed as a punishment for a crime or while awaiting trial”2. In prisons act 1894, “prison” means any jail or place used permanently or temporarily under the general or special orders of a State Government for the detention of prisoners, and includes all lands and

1 Digital Sansad, retrieved from https://sansad.in/ls

2 http://Oxforddictionaries.com/definitions/english/prison?q=prison, (Last visited on May 26, 2025)

buildings3. In India. ‘Prisons’ fall under the State Subject, and are included in List II of the Seventh Schedule to the Indian Constitution4.

5.HISTRORICAL ASPECT OF PRISON IN INDIA

In ancient India, a well-organized system of Prisons is existed in India. It is on record that Brihaspati laid great stress on imprisonment of convicts in closed prisons. However, Manu was against this system. It was a common practice to keep the prisoners in solitary confinement so as to afford them an opportunity of self-introspection. In Mughal time, he recognized modes of punishment were death sentence, hanging, whipping or flogging5. During 18th century the British Colonial rule marked the beginning of Penal Reforms in 1835, as a result of ideas by T B Macaulay, and to pursue the same further, a Prison Delegated committee was set up in 1838, to ensure thoroughness of treatment while dismissing every single philanthropic need and changes for the prisoners. Central Prisons were developed from 1846, following the suggestions and recommendations made by the Macaulay Committee.

In the year 1888, the Fourth Jail Commission was set- up, which recommended consolidation of existing rules and regulation to form a Prison Bill. This was enacted in the year 1894 after the Governor General of India gave his consent for the Bill to become a Law6. The Prisons Act of 1894, though primordial, is the only framework that deals with administration and management of jails in India, and is applicable all across the country. Though the Act fails to deal with various issues, due to lack of amendments made to it, the flaws in the legislation were highlighted in the report of the Indian Jail Committee 1919-1920 pertaining to the rehabilitation and reformation of offenders, which is also considered the primary motive of a prison administrator.

The said Indian jail reform committee, appointed to suggest prison reforms was headed by Sir Alexander Cardew, and it suggested that the capacity of inmates must be fixed on the basis of the prison area. Along with this, the Committee also underlined the need of aftercare programs for the released prisoners for the purpose of rehabilitation7. At present, prisons are a state subject as mentioned previously, but this wasn’t

3 Prisons Act, 1894 § 3(1)

4 Item No. 4 in List II (State List) in the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution.

5 Prof. N.V. Paranjape, Criminology and Penology p.515.

6 RISHABH BHARGAVA, A CRITICAL STUDY OF PRISON REFORMS IN INDIA, Pen Acclaims, Volume

2, July 2018, ISSN 2581-5504, retrieved from https://penacclaims.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Rishabh- Bhargava.pdf

7 Vidya Bhushan: Prison Administration in India p.21.

always the case, the legislative framework which resulted in the transfer of the subject of jails from the Centre list to that under the control and administration of provincial governments. The UN Assembly adopted, a document called Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment wherein the responsibility is shouldered on the state to take steps for effective judicial, legislative and administrative methods. While, it lays down the rules and instructions for interrogation and is a concrete piece of legislation, India unfortunately has yet not ratified to it.8

6.NEED FOR PRISON REFROMS IN INDIA

Despite the relatively low number of persons in prison as compared to many other countries in the world, there are some very common problems across prisons in India, and the situation is likely to be the same or worse in many developing countries. Overcrowding, prolonged detention of under-trial prisoners, unsatisfactory living conditions, lack of treatment programmes and allegations of indifferent and even inhuman approach of prison staff have repeatedly attracted the attention of the critics over the years. In Shri Rama Murthy vs State of Karnataka9, a prisoner sent a letter to the supreme court on the grievance of jail matter, to which court admitted as a writ petition. In this case, court took the opportunity to discuss major problems of Indian prisons and also gave suggestions regarding the same.

They are Ø overcrowding; Ø delay in trial Ø torture and ill- treatment; Ø neglect of health and hygiene;

8 NISHANT KRISHNA ADHIKARI, PRISON AND PRISON REFORMS IN INDIA, International Journal of

Law Management & Humanities, Volume. 4 Issue 4; 2161 retrieved from https://ijlmh.com/paper/prison-andprison-reforms-in-india

9 Shri Rama Murthy vs State of Karnataka AIR 1997 SC 1739

Ø insubstantial food and inadequate clothing Ø prison vices; Ø deficiency in communication; Ø streamlining of jail visits; Ø management of open-air prison. From independence to now, overcrowding and delay in trial are the major problem in Indian prisons on discussing this various committee has been appointed by our Country to revise the condition of prisons from time to time and give recommendations to the government for betterment of both prisoners and administration of prisons system in India10. After Independence, the Pakwasa committee and WC Reckless committee was appointed by the government of India. The Pakwasa Committee agreed to use inmates as roadworkers in 1949, and wages were paid for their efforts. In addition, in 1949, a Model Jail was established in Lucknow, where inmates were required to work on handloom machines and other domestic markets.

Even after the four decades passed the Indian Prison is overcrowded with under trail prisoners rather that the convicted prisoners. According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), India’s prisons were 131% full in December 2022. This was one percentage point higher than 2021. The number of undertrials increased by 14. 9% in 2021 to 4,27,16511. The states with the highest number of undertrials were:

1. Uttar Pradesh: 90,606

2. Bihar: 59,577

3. Maharashtra: 31,752

10 RISHABH BHARGAVA, A CRITICAL STUDY OF PRISON REFORMS IN INDIA, Pen Acclaims, Volume

2, July 2018, ISSN 2581-5504, retrieved from https://penacclaims.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Rishabh- Bhargava.pdf

11 National Crime Record Bureau Prison Statistics (Ministry of Home Affairs) available at

https://www.mha.gov.in/en/national-crime-records-bureau-ncrb

According to the Prison Statistics India-2022 released by the National Crime Records Bureau on 01.12.2023, there were 4,34,302 undertrial prisoners in India as of 31.12.202212. However, there are some findings in prison statistics India report on 2022. Prison Occupancy, Overcrowding continues to be a major concern with occupancy rate at 131%, despite a campaign to release undertrials. Total Population: 573,220 prisoners, of which over 75% are undertrials prisoners.

7. IMPORTANT COMMITTEES ON PRISON REFROMS

7.1 W.R Reckless Committee 1950

Dr. W. C. Reckless, a United Nations expert in penal work, was called by the Indian government in 1951 to do studies on prison administration and make policy recommendations. In his work titled “Jail Administration in India” he urged the conversion of prisons into centers for reform. Additionally, he suggested updating outdated jail manuals. In order to create a model jail handbook, the All-India Jail handbook Committee was established by the Indian government in 1957. In 1960, the committee submitted in its report. 13. The report made the correctional services should form an integral part of the home department of each state, the reformative methods of probation and parole shall be used, State after care Units should be set up, Classification of prisoners for the purpose of their treatment and State jail Manual should be revised periodically.

The report also suggested amendments in the Prison Act 1894 to provide a legal base for correctional work14.

7.2 Justice A.N. Mulla Committee 1980

In 1980, the Government of India appointed an All-India Jail Reforms Committee headed by Justice A.N. Mulla. The Committee recommended setting up a National Prison Commission to bring about modernization of prisons in India. It emphasized on the removal of the existing conflict of prison administration at the Union and State levels. It would be 12 Prison Statistics India-2022, https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1986452, last retrieved on May 14,2025.

13 Laws Governing Prisoners’ Rights in India – Civil and Political Rights, retrieved from

https://ebooks.inflibnet.ac.in/hrdp03/chapter/laws-governing-prisoners-rights-in-india/

14 DR. NITIN, PRISON REFORMS IN INDIA - WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO THE MAJOR

PROVISIONS OF THE PRISON ACT, 1894, International Journal of Criminal, Common and Statutory Law 2023; 3(2): 01-06 , retrieved from https://www.criminallawjournal.org/article/49/3-1-13-320.pdf

advisable by Mulla Committee to constitute an All-India Service called the Indian Prisons and Correctional Service for recruitment of Prison officials, so that the prison staff should be properly trained into different cadres. The Committee recommended a segregation for different categories of offenders were as follow, • Separate prisons for undertrials. • Separate prisons for women. • Separate institutes for juveniles and young offenders. • Security prisons for hardened criminals. In the year 1986, A Juvenile Justice Act was enacted and observation homes, special homes and juvenile homes were constituted where the neglected children and juvenile delinquent can be admitted and the juvenile delinquent cannot be kept within the prison15.

7.3 Justice V.R. Krishna Iyer Committee 1988

The Justice Krishna Iyer Committee was established in 1987 to investigate the situation of Indian women prisoners. With their unique role in dealing with female and juvenile offenders, it recommended more women should be recruited into the police force16. • Separate institutions with women employees alone for women offenders. • Necessary provisions to restore the dignity of women even if convicted17.

7.4 Committee under the chairmanship of Director General, Bureau of Police Research

and Development (BPR&D) 2005 This committee offered a number of new and additional suggestions based on the Justice

15 NISHANT KRISHNA ADHIKARI, PRISON AND PRISON REFORMS IN INDIA, International Journal of

Law Management & Humanities, Volume. 4 Issue 4; 2161 retrieved from https://ijlmh.com/paper/prison-andprison-reforms-in-india

16 ADV. SANJAY SARRAF, BEYOND THE WALLS: A COMPREHENSIVE LOOK AT THE HISTORY AND

FUTURE OF OPEN PRISONS, International Journal of Creative Research Thought, ISSN 2320-2882 available at IJCRT21X0081.pdf 17 Former Justice VR Krishna Iyer is remembered for his legal aid and reforms on the prisoners’ rights: Justice Surya Kant retrieved from https://www.indialegallive.com/top-news-of-the-day/news/former-justice-vr-krishnaiyer-pioneer-prison-system/ dated on May 25,2025.

Mulla Committee Report and the Justice Krishna Iyer Committee Report. A National Policy on Prison Reforms and Correctional Administration was also drafted in 2007. Introducing guidelines for prison administration and undertrial treatment under DPSP to the constitution, as well as incorporating prisons in the concurrent list. • Enactment of uniform and comprehensive law on matters related to prisons. • A department of Prisons and Correctional Services to be opened in each state and

union.18

7.5 Model Prison Manual 2003 – 2016

Model Prison Manual was prepared in 2003 by evolving national consensus on relevant issues relating to prison reforms in India and circulated to all State Governments for guidance. The National Crime Records Bureau formulated a Model Prison Manual in 2013 and 2016. It is an extensive guide that addresses a variety of subjects, including technological advancement in management, basic healthcare, learning in jails, legal aid, skills training, incarceration management, and technical training courses19. In the Inhuman Conditions in 1382 Prisons case 2016, the Supreme Court ordered that • In particular, Sections 436 and 436A of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, and the Probation of Offenders Act, 1958, shall be effectively implemented by the Under Trial Review Committee. In order to give first-time criminals an opportunity at rehabilitation in society, they ought to be freed.

The release of inmates who are awaiting trial for alleged compoundable offenses will also be investigated by the secretary of the District Legal Services Authority. • The Director General of Police or the Inspector General of Police, who oversees prisons, shall ensure that resources are used appropriately to ensure that inmate conditions such as health, cleanliness, food, clothes, rehabilitation are compatible with 18 Prison Reforms In India, Https://Blog. Forumias. Com/Prison-Reforms-In-India-21st-November-2020/ Dated On Nov,2020.

19 Ibid

human dignity20. • To improve prison and inmate management, the Ministry of Home Affairs will see to it that the Management Information System is put into place in all central, district, and womens jails. In order to prevent it from becoming another obsolete document, the Ministry will also evaluate the Model Prison Manual 2016 once a year. • A similar handbook for juveniles detained in observation homes, special homes, or places of safety established under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act of 2015 must also be prepared by Ministry of Home Affairs. Thus, a notice is forwarded to the Secretary of the Ministry of Women and Child Development to assist the MHA in preparing the Model.21.

7.6 Justice Amaitava Roy Committee

In 2018, the Supreme Court appointed this panel. The committee submitted its report on February 2020 with major recommendations includes • For overcrowding o Special fast-track courts should be set up to deal with petty offences. o Lawyers – prisoners’ ratio: there should be at least one lawyer for every 30 prisoners. • For Understaffing o The Supreme Court should pass directions to start the recruitment process against vacancies o There should be use of video-conferencing for trial. • For Prisoners

20 ANANTH, KINI, A CRITIQUE ON PRISONS IN INDIA IN THE LIGHT OF RE - INHUMAN CONDITIONS

IN 1382 PRISONS, Winter Issue 2017, ILI Law Review Volume 1 retrieved from https://ili.ac.in/pdf/ananth.pdf 21Ibid

o Every new prisoner should be allowed a free phone call a day to his family members to see him through his first week in jail. o Alternative punishments should be explored22

8. RECOMMENDATIONS BY LAW COMMISSION OF INDIA

The Law Commission of India headed by H. R. Khanna J, has recommended several possible remedies to the problem of overcrowding in jails such as guiding principles to be followed for release on bail in case of non-bailable offences and a need to liberalise provisions for release on bond, strengthening of machinery and equipment, suggested amendments to Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 and Indian Penal Code, 1860, separate places for detention of under trial prisoners etc23. In the same way, the Law Commission recommended additional measures in its 239th Report, including the standardization of the Criminal Court complexs layout, which should include distinct spaces for witnesses, inmates awaiting trial, police officers, advocates, and prosecutors, among other things.

Also, the jail should receive all emails pertaining to bail orders, and these complexes should have ample restroom and filtered drinking water. 24.

9. SUGGESTIONS

The inefficiency of judicial administrative system is reason for current prison problems. While arrest the offender, the police should follow the guidelines issued in the cases of D. K Basu vs. State of West Bengal25 and Arnesh Kumar vs State of Bihar26. Delay in giving the bail of alleged offences, in the accused on Magistrate Courts and District court level courts. In 2023 Our former Hon’ble Chief Justice of India, DY Chandrachud, also states that District Judges should have backbone while in dealing Bail 22 SC Panel Recommendations on Prison Reforms, retrieved from https://www. drishtiias. com/dailyupdates/daily-news-analysis/sc-panel-recommendations-on-prison-reforms 23 Law Commission of India, Congestion of Under-Trial Prisoners in Jail, Report No.

78 (February, 1979) 24 Law Commission of India, Expeditious Investigation and Trial of Criminal Cases Against Influential Public Personalities, Report No. 239th (March 2012).

25 D. K Basu vs. State of West Bengal AIR 1997 (1) 416

26 Arnesh Kumar vs State of Bihar 2014 8 SCC 273

Matters. This leads to so much of filling and pending Bail applications in High Courts and Supreme Courts. In 2024, July 1 the New Criminal Laws are enforced in India. Section 436A of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) replaces with Section 479 of Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) which states that undertrials who have completed one-half of the maximum period of imprisonment specified for that offence under that law shall be released on bail. The section also mandates that no such person shall, in any case, be kept in custody for more than the maximum period of imprisonment provided for the said offence under that law. Section 479 BNSS proposes insertion of a proviso which states that a person is a firsttime offender who have never been convicted in the past shall be released on bail if he has undergone a third of the maximum sentence prescribed27.

This benefit is not made subject to any other consideration, such as the seriousness of the offence of previous conviction or judicial discretion, and remains a matter of right for an undertrial who has not been convicted previously28. One noteworthy addition to the BNSS is Section 479(3), which assigns the superintendent of the jail where the accused is being held responsibility for requesting bail under this provision. This is particularly pertinent because ineffective legal counsel frequently results in inmates being refused release even when they fulfil the necessary requirements. 29. Prisons ought to be moved from the state list to the Concurrent List of the Constitution Seventh Schedule for obtaining more funding from state and federal sources.

Every state must establish Prison Official Training Institutes to provide training to prison officials, particularly in the area of handling high-risk offenders. There are just three prison training institutes at the moment, and they are located in Chandigarh, Kolkata, and Vellore, respectively. There should be more open prisons because they give inmates more freedom and dignity by letting them move around on the prison grounds, work outside the jail, and have

27 Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita ,2023 § 479.

28 Rajasthan State Judicial Academy, Reference Material On New Criminal Laws, 2023, available at

2024052146.pdf

29 Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita ,2023 § 479 (3).

fewer security guards. The United Nations Congress on Prevention of Crime and Treatment of Offenders is credited with creating the idea of an open prison30.

10. CONCLUSION

“Inmates are the guests in prisons and jailors are the hosts” - Justice V.R Krishna Iyer. Despite there are a number of statutes and decisions from courts31 that aim to safeguard prisoners rights in India, much more work has to be done in this area. One of the biggest obstacles to prison reform in India is still the implementation of these rights. The judiciary has been instrumental in the past in enhancing the prison system and mitigating some of the present issues within it. Thus, formulating a new legislation according with UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners along with recommendations of Justice Mulla and Justice Amaitava Roy committees is the current solution prison problems and it can be concluded that it is just the beginning of a long journey, a small step towards better prison system management and administration.

30 Supra 22

31 See for e.g., Rama Murthy V. State of Karnataka; AIR 1997 SC 1739; Prem Shankar Shukla v. Delhi

Administration; AIR 1980 SC 1535; Sunil Batra v. Delhi Administration.; AIR 1980 SC 157

REFERENCES – SECONDARY DATA

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N.V PARANJAPE, CRIMINOLOGY & PENOLOGY, Published by Central Law Agency,18th Edition 2019.

AHMAD SIDDIQUE’S, CRIMINOLOGY PENOLOGY AND VICTIMOLOGY,

Published by Eastern Book Company, 7th Edition 2020 • S R MYNENI, PENOLOGY AND VICTIMOLOGY, Published by Allahabad Law Agency, 1st Edition 2017

2. ARTICLES/JOURNALS/INYTERNET SOURCES

Ananth, Kini, A Critique On Prisons In India In The Light Of Re - Inhuman Conditions In 1382 Prisons, Winter Issue 2017, Ili Law Review Volume 1 Retrieved from Https://Ili.Ac.In/Pdf/Ananth.Pdf • Adv. Sanjay Sarraf ,Beyond The Walls: A Comprehensive Look At The History And Future Of Open Prisons ,International Journal Of Creative Research Thought, ISSN 2320-2882 retrieved from Ijcrt21x0081.Pdf • Burning Issues Need Of Prison Reforms Https://Www.Civilsdaily.Com/Burning-Issue- Need-Of-Prison-Reforms/ Dated On Nov,2018.

DR. NITIN, PRISON REFORMS IN INDIA - WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO

THE MAJOR PROVISIONS OF THE PRISON ACT, 1894, International Journal Of Criminal, Common And Statutory Law 2023; 3(2): 01-06 , Retrieved From Https://Www.Criminallawjournal.Org/Article/49/3-1-13-320.Pdf • Former Justice VR Krishna Iyer Is Remembered For His Legal Aid And Reforms On The Prisoners’ Rights: Justice Surya Kant Https://Www.Indialegallive.Com/Top-News- Of-The-Day/News/Former-Justice-Vr-Krishna-Iyer-Pioneer-Prison-System/ Dated On May 29,2022.

Nishant Krishna Adhikari, Prison And Prison Reforms In India, International Journal Of Law Management & Humanities, Volume. 4 Issue 4; 2161 Retrieved From Https://Ijlmh.Com/Paper/Prison-And-Prison-Reforms-In-India • Prison Reforms, Https://Www.Clearias.Com/Prison-Reforms/ Dated On Feb3,2023. • Prison Reforms In India, Https://Blog.Forumias.Com/Prison-Reforms-In-India-21st- November-2020/ Dated On Nov,2020. • Rishabh Bhargava, A Critical Study Of Prison Reforms In India, Pen Acclaims, Volume 2, July 2018, ISSN 2581-5504, Retrieved From Https://Penacclaims.Com/Wp- Content/Uploads/2018/08/Rishabh-Bhargava.Pdf