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Mandoli inmate illegally let out of jail, probe on
After being set free, the inmate — identified as Vijay Kumar — went roaming around Delhi, the officials said. The matter only came to light after other inmates raised the issue and alleged that the authorities were being biased in favour of Kumar, following which jail officials, realising their mistake, rushed to bring him back to the prison, the people said.
A man in his 40s, lodged in Mandoli prison in connection with two criminal cases, was allegedly released for approximately two weeks between August and September, even though no court issued a release paper that instructed the jail authorities to set him free, people aware of the matter said on Tuesday.
After being set free, the inmate — identified as Vijay Kumar — went roaming around Delhi, the officials said. The matter only came to light after other inmates raised the issue and alleged that the authorities were being biased in favour of Kumar, following which jail officials, realising their mistake, rushed to bring him back to the prison, the people said.
Kumar is still lodged in prison, and an inquiry has been initiated against two deputy superintendents, senior officials at Mandoli told HT.
Sharing details of the episode, senior jail officers said that Kumar was lodged in Mandoli in June in connection with two cases — a kidnapping case and a case of causing grievous assault.
Police said in August, one of his cases was up for hearing in Tis Hazari court.
“We don’t know what happened but on August 28, the inmate was released. For days, he went around Delhi and nobody in the jail even noticed that an inmate was missing. He was not released on bail or parole,” a senior officer said, declining to be named.
“The investigating officer in one of his cases came to jail and was shocked to find that the inmate was missing. In the meantime, other inmates too had noticed that their ward mate was missing, and had filed multiple complaints with jail authorities,” the police officer said.
The court took cognisance of one of the complaints — filed by a member of the Neeraj Bawana gang — which alleged that Kumar had offered a “hefty bribe” to jail officers RS Meena and Deepak Kumar and was let out of prison.
Court papers from Tis Hazari court show that the complaint was taken, via his lawyer, and a judge ordered that notices be issued to the jail superintendent and the two officials.
Separately, a senior official at prison headquarters said, “We received complaints from inmates and later, were told by the IO that an inmate was falsely released. The names of two deputy superintendents also came up. When we checked on September 11, we found it was true (that Kumar was missing). The next day, we were told that the jail officers brought him back in a private vehicle. We are looking into all the allegations of bribery and wrongdoing.”
HT reached out to deputy inspector general (Mandoli range) Rajesh Chopra, who said that the jail officials must have gotten confused and released Kumar.
“We realised the mistake after inmates lodged complaints... The inmate was brought back on September 12. We also informed the court. An internal inquiry is being conducted along with court proceedings about the involvement of the two jail deputy superintendents. We will take due action in the case,” he said.
