The coronavirus pandemic sweeping the country is necessitating the release of over 17,000 of the 35,000 plus prisoners in the 60 prisons located in 45 places in Maharashtra, Home Minister Anil Deshmukh has said.
“After 158 inmates of the Mumbai's largest prison Arthur Road Jail have tested positive for Covid-19 we decided to take such a huge decision to prevent contagion from spreading to more inmates and staff,” he informed and added, “A process is already underway to release 5,105 undertrials facing sentences of less than seven years on temporary bail and 3,017 convicts on emergency parole.”
He further informed how the new decision will see 9,520 undertrials facing a jail term of over seven years also being released on temporary bail taking the total number of inmates released to 17, 642. He quickly clarified thought, “Those charged under MCOCA, TADA, POTA, UAPA, PMLA, NDPS, MPID, Explosive Substances Act, Anti hijacking Act, POCSO, Foreigners in Prison, bank fraud, major financial scams, etc. will not be released.”
Eight prison lockdown
Deshmukh also informed that the Central prisons of Mumbai, Thane, Yerwada and Nashik and the district prisons of Byculla, Kalyan, Aurangabad and Nagpur will all be under complete lockdown. “Neither will a new inmate be sent to these facilities, nor will anyone be sent out. We are looking at keeping the staff too housed within 24x7 till the worst of the pandemic is not behind us.” The Home Minister also said that all the collectors have been told to look for alternate spaces which could work as temporary jails, especially for crowded facilities so that social distancing can be maintained.”