Sasikala's aides bribed another jail official, say protesting inmates

R Anitha, who was given charge of Central Prisons at Parappana Agrahara for less than 24 hours, has been receiving a Rs 3 lakh bribe per month from AIADMK deputy general secretary T T V Dhinakaran for providing “special facilities” to his aunt V K Sasikala who is lodged in the penitentiary, prisoners have alleged.

Many inmates raised slogans against Anitha as she took up office on Tuesday. Her interim appointment angered prisoners who have been protesting against the “irregularities” committed by Chief Superintendent Krishna Kumar who has since been transferred. They argued how could Anitha replace Krishna Kumar as she was his deputy and was involved in all the irregularities in the jail. Some of them alleged that Anitha, too, received “regular favours” from Sasikala’s aides to provide her VIP facilities.

They said she received a Rs 3 lakh bribe every month from Dhinakaran for “taking care of Sasikala”. A few inmates feared that Anitha would destroy all the evidence that former DIGP (Prisons) D Roopa had mentioned in her report about special treatment being given to Sasikala, Abdul Karim Telgi and other high-profile prisoners.

Taking note of the prisoners’ protest, the government appointed H S Revanna DIGP (Prisons) in the evening and gave him additional charge of the chief superintendent of the Bengaluru prison.

Prisoners, however, remain divided on the transfer of top officials of the Prisons Department. Besides Roopa and Krishna Kumar, DGP (Prisons) H N Sathyanarayana Rao, was also transferred on Monday. Just last week, Roopa had submitted a report, accusing Rao of taking a Rs 2 crore bribe for providing special facilities to Sasikala. Some prisoners have supported Roopa while others backed Rao.

On Tuesday, a number of prisoners staged protests and refused to eat breakfast. They wanted the government to order a detailed enquiry into Roopa’s allegations. They also demanded stern action against Krishna Kumar for the “irregularities” and for “harassing” the inmates. They said he divided them for his “personal gains”.

The protest lasted till afternoon with inmates refusing to obey the instructions. The jail staff, however, convinced them to call off the protest by promising that the newly appointed ADGP N S Megharikh would set things right.

The authorities deployed additional staff and cleaned up the prison as retired IAS officer Vinay Kumar is set to visit the facility to investigate allegations of irregularities.

Before Vinay Kumar’s visit, the prison authorities sought to strictly follow the jail manual by controlling the flow of visitors and denying permission to carry food items into the penitentiary. Visitors were given just 10-30 minutes to meet the prisoners. They were not allowed to hand over food items such as fruits and snacks to the prisoners, leaving many disappointed. Anitha and the staff combed a few barracks, searching for marijuana.