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Prisoners in Jalandhar run riot
after inmate dies
WSN Network
JALANDHAR:
Hundreds
of jail inmates in Jalandhar wrecked property, set fire to many
rooms and had a free run inside the 137-year-old dilapidated jail
after an inmate undertrial died because of lack of medical aid and
probably contaminated water supply. No casualties were reported from
the riot like situation that lasted nearly three hours.
The prison is
termed as "high security jail." Jaspal Singh of Adampur, who was in
judicial custody since February 18 in a cheating case, was found
dead on Sunday morning by fellow inmates, triggering the rioting.
Prisoners accused authorities of supplying bad water, something that
is not denied by most people. Idea of jail reforms has not moved
beyond seminar rooms in Punjab and medical aid in jails is a joke.
Cane-carrying
prisoners flaunted all authority, smashed windowpanes and set on
fire a ration store in the jail. Fire tenders had to be called even
as media persons watched the rioters throwing brickbats. Jail staff
ran at the first sign of trouble, and no one challenged the
prisoners for hours. Subsequently, the district police rushed in
personnel from all police stations in the city. A PAP contingent was
also requisitioned. The police first fired several rounds in the air
and then tried to initiate a dialogue with the agitating inmates,
who instead of getting pacified responded with stone pelting
directly at the police.
Later, Jalandhar
SSP Arpit Shukla and District Magistrate Ajeet Singh Pannu issued a
warning to either return to the cells or face direct action, a
threat that brought the prisoners back to the barracks around 9.30
am. In January, similar scenes had occured and a magisterial inquiry
after the incident had identified supply of drugs in the jail as one
of the major reasons for unrest and the subsequent clash. The DC
scribed the problem to overcrowding, claimed that against the
sanctioned capacity of 525, the jail currently has over 1,400
inmates.
2
April
2008
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