VC Facility Not Being Provided To Foreign Prisoners Due To Security Reasons: Tihar Jail To Delhi High Court

The Superintendent of Tihar Jail has told the Delhi High Court that the facility of video calling or e-mulaakats are not being extended to the foreign prisoners due to security reasons.

However, the Superintendent said telephonic voice calls are allowed once a week to inmates whose family members are residing abroad, on request.

The submissions were made in a status report filed by the prison authority while responding to a plea moved by student activists Natasha Narwal and Devangana Kalita, who are accused in the larger conspiracy case concerning the 2020 North East Delhi riots.

Both Narwal and Kalita had approached the court, when they were lodged in Tihar jail in judicial custody in a case connected to the Northeast Delhi riots. They were subsequently granted bail in June by the High Court.

The plea was filed during the COVID-19 pandemic seeking directions for providing various facilities to all the prisoners such as mulakats, dietary needs, daily telephonic interaction and internet access etc.

The status report filed in September states that every foreign prisoner is allowed to have a legal interview for preparing an appeal, seeking bail or for any other legal purpose. The report adds that the foreign prisoners are allowed to have legal interviews twice in a week like other prisoners.

"The foreign prisoners are also given consular access in accordance with the rules. Consulate officials of a foreign country are allowed to visit or interview a prisoner for arranging legal representation for them or for any other purpose only subject to approval of appropriate government authority," according to the report

The counsel appearing for the petitioners today apprised Justice Yashwant Varma that while all the reliefs as sought in the plea have been addressed by the authorities, however the larger issue of VC meetings for foreign inmates, whose relatives may be outside the country, was still pending.

The counsel appearing on behalf of the State submitted that telephonic calls and physical mulaakats are available to the relatives of such inmates. However, the petitioners' counsel submitted that exorbitant prices are charged for daily calling, starting from Rs. 400.

Hearing the parties, Justice Varma orally remarked "If inmate is in VC room and credentials are verified by you...I could understand the restriction… not being extended to those high risk (prisoners)...but otherwise for ordinary inmates …..."

As the counsel appearing for the State submitted that all the VC calls are monitored and recorded, Justice Varma remarked "We don't want to go there….because then there is the issue of privacy also."

The matter has now been listed for hearing next on February 9, 2023.

The court had previously asked the prison authorities to explain why it does not permit any person outside India to meet prison inmates via VC facility.

Title: NATASHA NARWAL & ANR v. STATE OF NCT DELHI & ANR