Covid-19 in India’s prisons

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As Covid-19 Hits India’s Prisons, Expert Explains Why Decongestion Is Not Enough

Madhurima Dhanuka, Programme Head of Prison Reforms Programme, Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative, told HuffPost India in an email interview that the entire framework around decongestion was not properly worked out by the top court.

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“The Supreme Court merely directed the formation of high-powered committees, who were to decide the categories of prisoners who are eligible to be considered for release. The actual releases for undertrial cases are required to be made by concerned courts — which means bail applications had to be filed and hearing had to be conducted — at a time when courts had also suspended work or restricted hearing to only urgent cases,” she said.

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Dhanuka added that decongesting was not enough and the focus should also have been on the inmates still inside the prison and the staff.