‘Jail authorities abet suicides’

Following the suicide of 31-year-old Siddalinga inside Parappana Agrahara central jail on Sunday evening, prisoners demanded the State Human Rights Commission to take action against the jail authorities for abetting suicides inside the prison’s premises.
In fact, this is not the first time jail inmates made such a demand.

In October 2010, following a series of suicides inside the central jail, they wrote a letter to additional director general of police (prisons), asking for a CID investigation into the suicides. But so far, no action has been taken in this regard.

In the letter, signed by more than 100 inmates, they alleged that prisoners were committing suicide because they were treated badly by jail authorities. “The authorities concerned failed to take any initiative to improve the inmates’ predicament by changing the environment in the jail,” said prison sources.

Prisoners were prompted to write the letter after a lot of inmates were either killed or committed suicide inside the jail. For instance, Gopala, a mentally challenged inmate, killed Sadiq, a fellow prisoner, by bludgeoning his head with a stone. Following the death of Gopala, the then ADGP ST Ramesh asked jail officials to monitor mentally challenged inmates and ensure that they are not attacked.
In the letter, inmates also alleged that prisoners, including Raju, Akshaykumar, Shubham Shankar, Rathnappa, Prakash Naidu, Ashok and Muniraju, committed suicide due to the negligence of prison doctors who also allegedly harassed inmates.

For over 4200 inmates lodged in the prison currently, there are only two doctors and there is no psychiatrist at all.
Following the series of suicides prior to October 2010, jail authorities allotted separate cells for mentally challenged prisoners. But they have not taken any initiative to appoint a psychiatrist. Prisoners alleged that prison doctors work only for three hours a day.

They alleged that instead of scientifically finding out the reason for inmates’ suicides, authorities cut most trees in the jail’s premises, supposedly to prevent inmates from hanging themselves from tree branches. The trees were actually a boon for inmates as they used to take rest under them after work, they said.
The death of Siddalinga, who hanged himself from the iron grill supporting the water tank inside a toilet using his cotton shawl, is the latest in a series of suicides occurred inside the prison, they said. “We request the State Human  Rights Commission to take action against the jail authorities who are responsible for the suicides,” they said.