The Supreme Court on Wednesday issued notices to the Centre and 11 states on a petition that said prison manuals across the country perpetuate caste discrimination.
The petition also said that prisoners are allocated work depending on their caste, which also determines where they are lodged in the jail.
“The caste realities of the carceral system in India entails a range of discriminatory practices, including the division of labour determined on the basis of caste hierarchy, and caste-based segregation of barracks. The Prison Manuals of various states sanction such discrimination and forced labour on the ground of caste,” the petition said. A bench headed by CJI Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud said the plea “raises an important issue,” and asked solicitor general Tushar Mehta to assist the court on behalf of the Centre.
The petition has made states of UP, Odisha, Jharkhand, Kerala, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Telangana, Punjab and Tamil Nadu as parties in the petition, besides the Centre.