PUCL Intervenes In Calcutta HC Proceedings Over In-Human Prison Conditions, Seeks Study Into Condition Of Women, Children & Transgender Persons In WB Prisons

The People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) has intervened in a plea before the Calcutta High Court regarding the condition of prisons in West Bengal, intending to improve living conditions for prisoners.

While the matter has been an ongoing public interest litigation since 2017, the issue came to the fore when a lawyer mentioned a plea pertaining to the pregnancies of female prisoners and the substantial population of children living along with their mothers in prisons across West Bengal. The plea sought to prohibit the entry of male staff into female prisons.

A division bench presided over by Chief Justice TS Sivagnanam re-assigned the matter to the division bench presided over by Justice Joymalya Bagchi, who emphasized that the dignity of women prisoners ought to be maintained in proceedings, and their identity kept confidential in order to avoid double-victimization of the prisoners.

PUCL's intervention application seeks an investigation presided over by an independent committee into the conditions of women and children in prisons across the state. 

The application states that the State of West Bengal had not complied with any recommendations made by the Supreme Court, Ministry of Women & Child Development, NCW, etc, and had not organized any camps on sexual awareness. sexual healthcare rights of women detenues. 

It further states that the State had not formed any advisory committees, or recruited sufficient female staff in women prisons.

"State does not have more than one women prison for the women and children in custody," the plea stated.

Accordingly, the plea prayed for the implementation of various guidelines on prison reform which were laid down in the Amitava Roy report, as well as the Modern Prison Manual, 2016, over the issue of women and children languishing in jail.

It seeks directions for a detailed study of women and children, as well as transgender persons- both Indian and foreign in prisons across the State to understand prison-specific and gender-specific issues faced by the prisoners. 

Accordingly, the plea sought inter alia directions for the formation of a court-monitored independent committee to conduct a detailed study on women, children, and transgender persons in prisons, to form a detailed report on the issues faced by these persons in prisons across the State.