4 yrs after amicus curiae report before HC, jails in Tamil Nadu remain 'hell'

CHENNAI: Not much has changed since the preliminary report of amicus curiae before the Madras High Court four years ago. The 18-page report revealed the inhuman conditions and the untold sufferings of the inmates lodged behind the high walls of the prisons across Tamil Nadu, dubbed it as a ‘hell hole’.

It cites some of the cases to illustrate how prisoners were suffering with broken limbs, major fractures, mental health issues and several other illnesses without receiving any medical care.

“The situation remains the same till date. After Justice S Manikumar was elevated as the Chief Justice of Kerala in October 2019 from Madras High Court, the issues pertaining to the prisons almost came to a standstill. Prior to that, there were periodical directions to reform the prison system,” D Geetha told DT Next.

She was assisting senior counsel and amicus curiae R Vaigai in the exercise of inspecting prisons and submitting reports to the court regarding the continuous mandamus to reform the prisons in TN. It was a fallout of a suo motu writ petition taken by the Supreme Court on the condition of the 1,382 prisons across the nation.

After 10 days of field inspections and interaction with stakeholders and prisoners, they have flagged several issues ranging from lack of basic amenities to the poor health condition of inmates. They have also suggested the court to direct the prison, police and line departments to take appropriate measures to address the grievous issues. “But all in vain,” rues Geetha.

“There are prisoners who are ill and suffering and need either urgent hospitalisation or prompt consultation and treatment under specialist doctors like cardiologists, orthopaedics, nephrologists, and ophthalmologists,” the report reads and highlighted that the procedural problem in arranging police escort denying them medical care.

Consistent suffering

R Boominathan and S Thiruvadai in Central Prison in Tiruchy had broken lower limbs with major fractures. They need a surgical procedure. Since there was no escort service, doctors in the government hospital had put a Plaster of Paris cast on their legs and sent them back to the prison.

When Vaigai and Geetha visited the prison on October 18, 2018, prisoners, who were suffering with pain, pleaded with them to make arrangements for their surgery.

In yet another case, Lakshmi (72 at the time), had unbearable pain on her elbow and was also running a high temperature. She had been in prison for eight months. Prior to that, she had an implant done for a fracture on her right elbow. During the course of her imprisonment, she developed acute pain on the operated elbow.

Doctors in the Vellore GH found that the implant had “degenerated and broken into two and had pierced into her bones”. However, she was not admitted for treatment and sent back to prison for the lack of escort. Doctors told prison authorities to do culture sensitivity for Lakshmi, but there was no such facility available in the prison hospital.

When Vaigai and Geetha visited the prison, Lakshmi’s condition had worsened as puss was oozing from the wound at the elbow.

A fellow inmate, Saraswathi (85 then) had almost lost her vision due to advanced cataracts and needed surgery. However, prison authorities were unable to send her for treatment to the GH, as it was located around 7 km away from the prison. And, again, for the want of a police escort.

Neglected convicts

Inmates’ suffering came to light only after the field inspection of the amicus curiae. Along with associate advocates, they had visited the Central Prison, open air prisons and borstal schools in Madurai, Sivaganga, Tiruchy, and Vellore between October 15 and 27, 2018, in pursuant of the HC orders to study the prevailing situation.

They held extensive interviews with prison authorities, including doctors attached to the prison department, prisoners and various agencies involved in reform and rehabilitation programmes.

Going by the report, several prisoners had mental illness of varying degrees. They had been diagnosed with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and severe depression. Without giving proper medical care, they were isolated in separate blocks. A life convict is made as their care-giver.

“They are in a pathetic state, in very poor hygiene with hardly any psychiatric support, apart from the medicines that are given to them,” Vaigai said in the report that was submitted to the HC on October 31 the same year.

The report also highlighted the case of a 78-year-old inmate in Madurai, who was diagnosed with schizophrenia and totally blind. Though he was recommended for premature release twice, prison authorities awaited the government’s decision. This case was a tip-off of an iceberg.

Prison authorities in Vellore informed the amicus curiae that 13 of the inmates have mental illness. The report also divulged that one-third of the prisoners were under some form of psychiatric medication with most being treated for anxiety and depression.

However, the remand and under-trial prisoners were left in the lurch as there was no medical scrutiny for them. Prison doctors informed the amicus curiae that remanded and under-trial prisoners often fall ill. They get agitated, depressed and sometimes even report having hallucinations, but they are prescribed sedatives for a couple of days, without any other medical intervention.

Though the National Human Rights Commission had issued a direction to all the state governments and union territories to shift prisoners with mental illness to facilities that offer institutional psychiatric care like the Institute of Mental Health at Kilpauk, prison authorities did not take such any action.

No toilets, drinking water

The report highlighted the situation of remanded prisoners as most horrifying. Illustrating their situation, the report pointed out that 129 prisoners have been lodged in a single dormitory that meant for 50 prisoners.

Most of them were lodged in British-era buildings that have no proper sewage pipelines. There were insufficient toilets for the prisoners and they were in an “unhygienic state”. In several cases, one toilet exists in each dormitory for more than 50 inmates. They have to use it between 5.30 pm and 6 am (lock-up time) every day.

Lack of water and detergent agents to clean toilets make it even worse. It’s a “hell on earth”, the report said. Similar condition of the toilets outside the dormitory too. They were also not provided portable drinking water in most of the prisons.