The injustice of 'Undertrials' why Jail not Bail?

By S R Ranjan: Can you ‘hear’ them? "Bail is Rule, Jail is the Exception" is the oft quoted phrase of the Supreme Court and High Courts in India. The 'misery of undertrials' in India is increasing year-by-year and there’s no stopping. Even the Article 11 of Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), an international document adopted by the United Nations General Assembly states that “Every human being is innocent until proven guilty, a fundamental element of fair trials and the rule of law”.

Unlike, Prison Statistics of India (PSI) 2022 report finds that here in India, across the states and union territories (UTs), prisons are overcrowded and run at more than 100% capacity with a large number of undertrials.  The annual states/UTs data for ‘Prison Statistics India’ is furnished by the prison departments of all 36 states/UTs as per the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). The NCRB released it Prison Statistics India 2022 report.

The Prison Statistics India 2022 data report finds that the total number of prisons at national level has increased from 1,319 in 2021to 1,330 in 2022 having increased by 0.8%, but on an average the occupancy rate is higher than that of 100% to 131.4% in 2022.  With 184.5% Delhi has reported the highest occupancy rate, followed by Uttarakhand (183.3%) Uttar Pradesh (179.9%), Meghalaya (167.2%), Madhya Pradesh (164.4%) and Maharashtra (161.4%) as on 31^st December, 2022. Especially to mention, the highest number of female inmates were confined in the jails of Uttar Pradesh (4,809) followed by Bihar (2,938) and Madhya Pradesh (1,911), however, Uttarakhand has reported the highest female occupancy rate (166.5%) followed by Bihar (146.8%) and Uttar Pradesh (128.2%). But what is more startling is that reportedly in some of the prisons in Bihar, occupancy is much higher between 200% and over 400%. Such official figures certainly does not match well with the aim of the Model Prison Manual 2016.

The misery does not end here, according to the PSI 2022 report, across the states and UTs, 74% of the number of prisoners are ‘Undertrials’. “The actual capacity of prisons has increased from 4,25,609 in 2021 to 4,36,266 in 2022 (as on 31st December of each year), having increased by 2.5%. Number of prisoners lodged in various jails has increased from 5,54,034 in 2021 to 5,73,220 in 2022 (as on 31st December of each year), having increased by 3.5% during the period”, states the report.

United Nation’s UDHR Article 11 further states that “Everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law in a public trial at which he has had all the guarantees necessary for his defence. No one shall be held guilty of any penal offence on account of any act or omission which did not constitute a penal offence, under national or international law, at the time when it was committed. Nor shall a heavier penalty be imposed than the one that was applicable at the time the penal offence was committed”. Unlike this, people in India are presumed to ‘guilty until proven innocent’.

Here in India, ‘undertrial prisoners’ are those who have been arrested or are under remand, people who have been waiting for trail or investigation, but are locked up in prisons, and even those who are poor and do not have enough money for bail or there is no family member who can get bail for them. Lawfully and under legal circumstances, prisons are made for those who are held ‘guilty’ under law or those who have committed crime and are convicted, not for those who have not yet been tried and investigation are still going on? In the legal process, delays in deciding cases, long drawn legal battles and disinclination in granting bail also add the number of prisoners languishing in jail. As per PSI 20222, Uttar Pradesh has reported the maximum number of undertrials (21.7%) in the country followed by Bihar (13.2%) and Maharashtra (7.6%) at the end of 2022. 

Now the question arises, with the implementation of the newly passed laws, Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and the Bharatiya Sakshya Bills, will the issues of ‘occupancy’ and ‘undertrials’  be resolved/reduced or further surge/swell?

Every person should be brought to justice, but we need to address the basic violation of a person’s human rights and unfair imprisonment of the ‘Undertrials’.

S R Ranjan

(Singh Rakesh Ranjan)

A Journalist

#Undertrails #Jail #Prison #NCRB #UNHRC #States #World #India
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 (Representational Image: Sources)