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Behind the stone wall: Byculla jail violence exposes corrupt staff, highlights poor living conditions

The recent death of an inmate and subsequent rioting at Byculla jail brings to light issues of overcrowding and poor living conditions in prisons. It also highlights the failure to provide security, and exposes the corrupt jail staff turning a blind eye to contraband being exchanged for bribes

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Spread across two acres, Arthur Road jail was built by the British in India in 1926 as a transit prison
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On June 24, the otherwise quiet Byculla jail premises witnessed a serious law and order situation. A day before, 45-year-old convict Manjula Shetye, who was popular among jail inmates, was allegedly beaten to death inside the premises. Shetye’s death became a flashpoint between inmates and the staff.

Sensing that the situation might go out of hand, the prison authorities then sought help from Nagpada police. However, the damage was already done. Around 250 inmates had run amok inside the jail and went on to break CCTV cameras, burn newspapers and clothes, and assault prison staff and policemen.

The incident not only brings to the fore issues of overcrowding and poor living conditions in Arthur Road and Byculla jails, but also highlights the failure to provide adequate prison security, and the corrupt jail staff turning a blind eye to contraband being exchange for bribes.

The overcrowding menace

Currently, Arthur Road jail can the capacity to accommodate 804 inmates. According to statistics provided by the prison department, at the end of June, the prison housed a whopping 3,100 inmates, over three times the stated capacity. The number of inmates increases almost on a daily basis, officials said.

Spread across two acres, Arthur Road jail was built by the British in India in 1926 as a transit prison, and was outside the then city limits. Over the years, however, the city has engulfed the prison and the high-security facility is now surrounded by residential colonies.

One of the oldest prisons in Maharashtra, Arthur Road jail is officially called the Mumbai Central Prison and is among the very few such facilities worldwide to be surrounded by residential and commercial establishments. As a norm, such prisons, or correctional facilities as they are known in some countries, are located outside city limits to ensure better safety and less trouble to citizens.

The situation is equally bad at Byculla prison, which has room for 200 male and 262 female inmates. However, there are around 320 male and 290 female inmates. The prison also has 18 children who live with their mothers inside.

What ails Mumbai’s jails?

In 2015, a Division Bench of the Bombay High Court directed a Sessions Court judge in Mumbai to depute an Additional Sessions judge to inspect the Arthur Road jail and women’s prison at Byculla, and to submit a report.
In his report to the High Court, the woman judge who had visited Byculla prison had observed that there were no separate bathrooms for women inside the barracks, there were only 17 bathrooms on the ground floor, there were no separate bathrooms for male prisoners, and there was a common bathing area. 

There was insufficient female staff in the jail. In general, the prison was understaffed. It was easy for anyone to climb on the roof of the staff quarters and enter the jail compound, the judge observed. The Jail Superintendent was of the view that height of the wall should be increased.

In the jail hospital, there was no bed for emergency services. There was neither a facility for a separate room, nor space for medical isolation. 

There was no bathroom for the patients either. If a patient was lying on one bed, another was required to sit. The judge, in his report, said there was enough space for additional construction in the hospital. With regard to Arthur Road Jail, the judge observed that the toilets were in a bad condition. There were no separate bathrooms, forcing inmates to bathe in the open.

The way forward

In March, a division bench of Justices Abhay Oka and Justice Amjad Sayed directed the government to construct additional toilets across Mumbai jails, as well as in all other jails in the state within a period of six months from March.

The judges urged the government to build modern prisons to accommodate prisoners and provide them with basic livable facilities. “Not providing separate bathrooms for protecting inmates’ privacy, especially in the case of women inmates, offends the dignity of a woman,” the bench said.

The court also asked the government to ensure all necessary benefits are extended to the children of inmates. “Ensure women are able to meet their children (those who not staying with them) at frequent intervals,” the court said.

The government has also been asked to provide crèche facilities inside prisons, nursery schools, kindergarten, if necessary primary schools near the precincts of the jails, to ensure children have access to education. If these facilities cannot be provided, the state will be liable to secure the admission of these children in nearby schools.

The bench said, “Since mothers in such cases will not be able to afford the school fees, the government will also have to provide monetary aid.”

With regard to medical facilities, the court suggested the introduction of modern amenities, and  the appointment of specialised doctors to provide proper medical aid to inmates. 

The government has also been asked to appoint a permanent committee of social workers and dieticians to monitor the quality and quantity of food served to prisoners in jails. 

“On the directions of the HC in March, the state government has appointed a five-member committee to look into the gamut of prison issues, reforms and prison modernisation. The committee comprises Additional Director General of Prison, Dr Vijay Raghavan of TISS and SN Chavan, a retired Prison Officer. The committee has been given six months time to submit it’s report,” said a government official. 

He added, “The Maharashtra government is also working on inking an MoU with the Israeli government to upgrade the security systems in jails. The new systems may first be installed at Nagpur central jail, which saw a jail break in 2015. The government has also appointed consultants to suggest ways to reduce overcrowding and enhance security and facilities.

“In order to ease overcrowding in Arthur Road jail, a plot  in Mankhurd has been shortlisted for the construction of another prison. The proposal is pending government approval. Things should materialise in the next few years. In 2016, the construction of two new barracks began at Arthur Road jail to increase the jail’s capacity to accommodate around 400 inmates,” said a prison official.

Crowd control

Crowd control measures are in place, but there is an urgent need for more jail guards, said prison officials.

“Everybody is segregated into barracks and there are barracks-in-charge. There are adequate officers to look after each barrack. Their duties are rotated every three months. Mob dispersal drills are conducted according to the prison manual. We do not have enough female staff, which is why we were required to deploy additional personnel from the local police in the recent rioting case at Byculla jail. There are enough CCTVs to monitor sensitive areas in the jails. We are equipped with weapons to handle violent situations,” an official said.

The officer said the strength of jail guards is calculated on the basis of the number of prisoners. “But today if we have three-fold prisoners in jails as compared to the official inmate capacity of the jails, then the strength of jail guards should be two-fold at least. There are currently a total of around 400 jail guards for Arthur Road and Byculla jails. We have already sent a proposal to the government about the number of extra jail guards that are required in both the jails,” the official said.

SHRC plays the role of a watchdog to safeguard the human rights. of inmates. Ironically, just a week ago, the State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) conducted a two-day workshop for prison authorities on custodial deaths. 

“The workshop sought to sensitise officials about the complaints of custodial violence and deaths that the Commission receives. Health and medical facilities of prisoners, right to legal aid, physical and mental torture of prisoners and suicides were also discussed,” said SR Bannurmathm, Chairperson of SHRC. He said the prison officials were also briefed about the guidelines of the National Human Rights Commission and Supreme Court guidelines on prisons.  “Most of the prisons are overcrowded, and that in itself, is a human rights violation,” he said.

Court orders

With regard to medical facilities, the court suggested the introduction of modern amenities, and the appointment of specialised doctors to provide proper medical aid to inmates. 

The state was told to appoint a committee of social workers and dieticians to monitor the quality of food served in jails. 

Infamous brawls behind bars

May 31, 2016
Four inmates of Arthur Road jail were seriously injured after around 13 under-trials clashed inside the prison. A scuffle broke out between two groups, who used sharpened pieces of metallic sheets and edges of their plates as weapons to attack each other. Jail officials had lodged cases of rioting.

Sep 25, 2010
Hasan Mehendi, an associate of gangster Abu Salem was attacked inside Arthur Road jail by two Pandav Putra gang members, namely Pratap Pandey and Mangesh Shelar. Police suspect that they attacked Mehendi since he was a key witness in the Dossa-Salem fight.

July 24, 2010
Gangster Abu Salem was attacked by Dawood Ibrahim’s close aide, Mustafa Dossa, inside Arthur Road jail. Dossa and his associates Abdul Qayum Sheikh attacked Salem with a sharp steel spoon, which was shaped like a knife. Salem sustained minor injuries on his cheek and neck.

Jan 24, 2008
An under-trial, Asgar Ali Mehendi, 25, was stabbed to death by four inmates in the presence of a large crowd in Arthur Road jail. Mehendi was the prime accused in the murder of John D’Souza, who was similarly stabbed and killed inside the jail in December 2007.

Dec 23, 2007
John D’Souza, a robber from the Katta Shekhar gang, was stabbed to death by another under-trial, Asgar Ali Mehendi, and his associate Sachin Shetty in a fight that took place inside Arthur Road jail. Spoons and plates were sharpened and turned into knives, which were used to kill D’Souza.

August 24, 2005
Chhota Rajan’s accomplices, Vicky Malhotra, Fareed Tanasha and two others, got into an argument with D-gang’s cronies, Saleem Shaikh and Ehtesham, resulting in an episode where both groups started pelting stones at each other. A policeman suffered injuries in the incident.

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