JOIN USArrange bail and online meetings for women prisoners: NCW
Warning that the COVID-19 situation may get worse for women prisoners, National Commission for Women (NCW) on Wednesday asked jail officials across the country to decongest women prisons by releasing even undertrials facing grievous charges on bail, augment medical facilities and arrange online meetings with family.
NCW Chairperson Rekha Sharma wrote to Directors General and Inspectors General of Prisons in states saying that the current situation arising out of the pandemic demands "special attention" to women wards in these facilities.
To ensure that the inmates remain healthy, she also said they should be given masks, hand gloves and sanitisers and encourage them to wash their hands at regular interval and avoid touching their faces and make gatherings. Sanitation drives should be conducted in jail premises regularly besides, providing adequate number of toilets with running flush, bathrooms and wash basins with constant supply of water.
“Any slackness on the part of the prison authorities may result in the situation of prisons getting out of hand posing a serious threat to the life of women inmates,” she wrote in the letter.
Pitching for immediate action for decongesting the "overcrowded" women wards of the prisons, Sharma said one way is to ensure prompt legal action to release them on bail as "very significant" number of undertrial prisoners languishing in jail.
She suggested that State Legal Services Authority (SLSA) or District Legal Services Authority should be roped in to ensure that bail applications are filed before courts along with a "positive recommendation" from the prosecution.
Sharma is of the view that even cases of undertrials who are facing charges that could lead to life imprisonment or death penalty need to be processed under Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), which provides for concession to women and children below 16 years in the matter of bail.
Services of senior lawyers should be obtained specifically for this, irrespective of whether the undertrials sought any legal aid. Action for release of convicted prisons on parole should also be considered favourably, she said.
With the lockdown putting a spanner, Sharma said authorities should also arrange meetings of prisoners with their families through video conferencing, as it it is “essential” for their psychological well-being.
Asking jail authorities to adopt a therapeutic approach and treat women inmates with compassion, she said healthcare in jails should be augmented by providing medical check-up and arranging sessions with specialists like psychologists, psychiatrists, psychiatric Social Worker and gynaecologist on visit basis in the prison itself.
Sharma also asked jail authorities to provide them beds with enough moving space in between the beds or in cases where raised platforms are provided in close vicinity, occupancy should be arranged in a manner that the norm of social distancing is maintained.
Women prisoners should also be provided with clean bed sheets, pillow covers, pairs of clean clothes, sanitary napkins, under garments, basic cosmetics, soap in enough quantity, detergent for washing clothes, shampoo, hair oil and tooth paste among others.