Thane prison inmates lack proper sleeping spcae: CMO informs Court

A special anti-corruption bureau (ACB) court on Friday rejected Nationalist Congress Party MLA Ramesh Kadam’s plea for a cot, mattress and pillow after jail officials stated that Thane central prison, where Kadam is lodged, is overcrowded and currently accommodating over four times its maximum capacity

A special anti-corruption bureau (ACB) court on Friday rejected Nationalist Congress Party MLA Ramesh Kadam’s plea for a cot, mattress and pillow after jail officials stated that Thane central prison, where Kadam is lodged, is overcrowded and currently accommodating over four times its maximum capacity.

NCP MLA Ramesh Kadam’s request for cot, mattress, and pillow in Thane jail rejected (Kunal Patil/HT PHOTO)

Kadam had sought a cot, mattress and a pillow, claiming that since 2018 he had been suffering from severe pain in spinal cord because of which he is also suffering knee and neck pain, primarily because of sleeping on the floor.

The jail superintendent refused the application, contending that the Maharashtra Prisons Manual, 1979, has no provision for alotting a cot, mattress and pillow to an accused.

The chief medical officer (CMO) of the jail also opposed the plea, contending that due to the considerable rise in prisoners, demands of each cannot be met by the prison administration.

The CMO informed special judge RN Rokade that Thane jail had 17 general barracks and 126 independent rooms, with total capacity to accommodate 1,105 prisoners, but presently 4,553 prisoners lodged in the central prison.

“The prisoners are not getting enough space to sleep and also police guards are not available to produce the accused in court and hospital. Due to the aforesaid situation, for a temporary period the prisoners are allowed to sleep in the balcony of the first floor of the prison building,” the CMO informed the court. “Because of the same, 22 prisoners are on protest, 14 male and female prisoners have attempted suicide,” the CMO informed the court.

The special court accepted the stand of the jail authorities and rejected the NCP MLA’s plea. “Undoubtedly, the prison is flooded with the inmates,” said the court. “It is not possible to provide cot, mattress and pillow to each of the inmates, save as in exceptional cases.”

Kadam, who has been accused of syphoning of over ₹310 crore from a state-run body, was arrested from a five-star hotel on the Pune-Ahmednagar road in June, 2017.

Working as chairman of the government-run Annabhau Sathe Development Corporation (ASDC), Kadam allegedly transferred the funds to organisations headed by him. The money, according to state CID officials, was meant for the welfare of backward communities for whom the corporation was set up.

The charges against Kadam include illegally sanctioning ₹41 crore to Joshaba Central Cooperative Society, an organisation controlled by him. Kadam, the legislator from Mohol in Solapur, also allegedly sanctioned ₹58 crore to set up a spinning mill in Aurangabad. The investigation revealed that the mill was controlled by him.

Several transactions made by Kadam on behalf of ASDC caused the corporation huge financial losses, according to the FIR registered against the MLA on June 19, 2017.