Chintan Upadhyay gets bed, bed sheet in Thane jail

The Thane prison authorities have agreed to provide bed and bed sheet to artist Chintan Upadhyay who is lodged there for allegedly murdering his estranged wife and her lawyer.

A division bench of justices Ranjit More and SC Gupte was informed by the prison authorities that Chintan is being provided with a pillow, blanket and dhurrie for sleeping. If he wants an extra blanket, he can ask for it from the prison authorities and, on advice from the medical board, the same can be provided. With respect to medical aid in prison, he can approach the prison hospital and all required medical help will be given.

Senior counsel Niteen Pradhan, appearing for Chintan, had approached the court, seeking directions to provide him with a bed to sleep on inside jail as he is unable to sleep on the floor due to his back problem.

In his petition, the artist arrested for double murder had claimed that he is suffering from spondylitis, which is aggravating because he is being made to sleep on the floor. No medical help is provided to him by the prison authorities. The plea seeks directions to the authorities to provide him with a bed which would bring some relief to him.

Chintan was arrested on December 28, 2015, in connection with the murder of his estranged wife Hema and her lawyer Harish Bhambhani. Four other accused — Pradip Rajbhar, Vijay Rajbhar, Shivkumar Rajbhar and Azaad Rajbhar — are also currently lodged in judicial custody. The main accused, Vidyadhar Rajhbhar, is still at large.