Gujarat High Court Chief Justice Inaugurates Psycho-Socio Care Centers In Three Central Jails

This initiative, led by the Gujarat State Legal Services Authority and the state government, expands on the pilot program initiated at Sabarmati Central Jail in Ahmedabad in 2022.

During the inauguration event, Justice Biren Vaishnav highlighted the establishment of the first psycho-socio center at Sabarmati Central Jail on August 19, 2022, in partnership with Rashtriya Rashtra University (RRU).

He praised the inauguration of this initiative, led by the then Chief Justice of India U U Lalit, for its role in enabling inmates to express their emotions and feelings, ultimately contributing to the overall improvement of mental health within the prison.

Furthermore, Justice Vaishnav mentioned that this innovative approach is also being implemented in Jammu and Kashmir through collaboration with RRU.

Notably, Rajkot Central Jail, with 1,216 prisoners, including 871 undertrials and 75 women prisoners, is part of the program. The Surat Central Jail at Lajpore is expected to accommodate 2,962 inmates, including 2,133 undertrial prisoners. Three psychologists from RRU will oversee the psycho-socio care centers.

Chief Justice Agarwal stated that the program is designed to address the issue of prisoners enduring prolonged periods in jail. The team of psychologists utilizes a comprehensive approach involving semi-projective, projective, and objective psychological testing to evaluate the overall well-being of individuals, she said.

CJ Agarwal further said, “The psychological evaluation is working in two ways – providing the present medical state of the person and at the same time an opportunity of catharsis for the beneficiaries. The method is showing excellent results. The same method is applied weekly on the same persons to identify the changes, assess and progress and it is found effective. The method is applied to all categories of inmates.”

“Considering the success, it was decided to extend the services to three more jails. I hope Gujarat will be a model state for prison reforms and the concept of psycho-social care,” she added.

Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva and Justice Manoj Kumar Ohri from the Delhi High Court were also in attendance at the event. Although Supreme Court judge Justice Sanjiv Khanna was initially scheduled to participate, he had to excuse himself due to prior commitments, as informed by Chief Justice Agarwal.

Chief Justice Agarwal commended the training program initiative, highlighting the deep-seated feudal structure within Indian courts. She expressed, "Advocacy has never been seen from the institutional perspective. It was always considered a profession of the elite, by the elite and for the elite. With the globalisation and emphasis on inclusiveness of all sections of society, our courts have become more accessible."

Addressing the increase in cases, Chief Justice Agarwal said, "Some people may attribute flooding of cases to frivolous litigation but I consider this as a sign of repositioning the faith of the society in the justice dispensation system of our country.”

A two-day training program for enhancing advocacy skills among legal aid counsels was also inaugurated on Saturday. The program, organized by the Indian Institute of Legal and Professional Development, focuses on imparting the art of advocacy to lawyers. The trainees were presented with case facts and were subsequently required to perform various trial stages, including examination-in-chief and cross-examination.

The training sessions involve constructive critiques by the trainers, followed by a reprisal where trainees incorporate the feedback received. The program is scheduled to take place on February 3 and 4. Chief Justice Agarwal emphasized that the initiative aims to prepare "legal aid warriors."