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Literature available for inmates in prisons needs to be monitored, says MHA
The trigger for the latest MHA advisory on literature accessible to prisoners is not known but people familiar with the development said the move is aimed is making sure anti-national material doesn’t reach inside prisons.
New Delhi: The ministry of home affairs (MHA) has asked states and prison authorities across the country to keep an appropriate oversight on the literature available in prison libraries to ensure that inmates are not negatively influenced, while adding that background of non-government organisations involved with prison activities should be verified on a periodic basis.
It has further said that “effective steps should be taken to prevent prisons from becoming breeding grounds for anti-national activities, for which regular inspection of prisons may be conducted”. The advisory, seen by HT, was issued on Monday to the states and director general of prisons on effective prison management and strengthening security arrangements in prisons.
The trigger for the latest MHA advisory on literature accessible to prisoners is not known but people familiar with the development said the move is aimed is making sure anti-national material doesn’t reach inside prisons.
A Mumbai special court, while allowing activist Sudha Bhardwaj – arrested in Bhima Koregaon violence case – to access five books per month in January last year, had said that jail authorities cannot refuse to accept books sent for prisoners but they can go through the contents to ensure there is no objectionable material.
Asking authorities to implement the suggestions, the MHA said on Monday, prisons should use effective jamming solutions with modern day advances in technology to restrict illegal access/use of mobile phones by inmates.
Radicalisation inside prisoners has been a major concern of intelligence agencies and has been raised in several meetings over the years.
The jail authorities have been asked “to restrict unnecessary movement of jail staff in and out by maintaining proper entry and exit registers. Subsequently, jail structure and periphery walls of all jails may be inspected, and to the extent possible, it may be ensured that distance between the outer wall and the walls of jail ward are designed in such a manner that incidents of throwing contraband items from outside the jail are not possible”.
“First time offenders and repeat offenders may be segregated and should be housed in separate wards/prison complex with a view to ensure that habitual offenders are not able to negatively influence the first time offenders,” it said.
