British embassy officials not allowed to meet Indrani Mukerjea in jail

Officials from the British embassy were turned away by authorities at women's prison in Byculla when the former approached the officials there with a request to meet the celebrity inmate Indrani Mukerjea.

According to prison sources, on Wednesday, officials from the British consulate approached the jail authorities, seeking access to Indrani, stating that she is a Britain citizen. "The consulate officials told us that Indrani had surrender her Indian passport and she holds citizenship of Britain and hence the Britain Consulate wanted to meet her and check on her well-being," said a jail authority on condition of anonymity. "They also cited that India is a signatory to Geneva Convention and according to it they had access to Indrani," he said.

However, the Consulate officials were politely declined access to Indrani, citing she is currently an undertrial and she is been tried for a murder case. According to procedure, whenever a citizen of another country is arrested in India for any offence, the Consulate concerned has to be informed in writing. After Indrani was arrested, the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Zone IX, Satyanarayan Chaudhary had written to British Consulate, informing the same.