JOIN USKarnataka’s DIG (Prisons) D Roopa’s revelations, exposing the unseemly shenanigans that have been going on inside the Parappana Agrahara central jail under the very nose of jail officials, possibly with their connivance, are shocking. More than the fact that the sprawling jail on the outskirts of Bengaluru has become a den of corruption, what has emerged as a matter of serious concern is the complete subversion of jail rules and the brazen manner of denial and defence being put out by senior officials. Roopa, who has since been transferred, might have transgressed her service conduct rules by going to the media after the contents of her report to the higher-ups was leaked. But that doesn’t in any way absolve her boss, DGP H N Sathyanarayana Rao, who had seemingly ignored her earlier complaints to him. Roopa’s charges that ‘VIP prisoners’ like AIADMK general secretary V K Sasikala Natarajan and Abdul Kareem Telgi were being treated inside the jail as royal guests appear to be confirmed by the leaked, though undated, video clips.
Considering that they were convicted and sentenced by the Supreme Court to undergo specific prison terms, it is nothing but a mockery of the justice system. Whoever was responsible for treating judicial verdicts with disdain should not only bow their heads in shame, but they should also be proceeded against for contempt of court.
It has also emerged from the report that there is rampant corruption inside the jail and most inmates enjoy various degrees of freedom and access to their needs like good food, liquor, mobile and even drugs depending on their resources and abilities to ‘please’ the prison staff. There are also charges of gambling, prostitution, harassment and molestation of women prisoners, ‘hafta’ collection by the jailors, granting of parole for a price and so on. It is apparent that the prison administration has collapsed and there is an urgent need for a complete overhaul.
The government has done well to institute an enquiry by a retired IAS officer and it has promised to take all remedial measures. The removal of the DGP, DIG and the jail superintendent was necessary in the interest of a fair and impartial enquiry. Reports suggesting that some of the video evidence have been erased are disturbing, but the enquiry officer may not find it difficult to piece all the evidences together by subjecting those involved to thorough investigation. The government should take the enquiry findings seriously and initiate reformation of the jail administration in such a manner that it brings back public confidence in the justice system. As the jail staff members have repeatedly been found wanting, the government should consider deploying a paramilitary force in one of the layers of prison security.