Jail Selfie: Punjab Prison Authority Writes To Cyber Crime Branch To Take Down Photos From Social Media

The Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) Punjab Prisons has informed the High Court that a letter has been addressed to ADGP, Cyber Crime to take down the photographs and videos circulating on social media, which after enquiry were found to be clicked from inside various prisons of Punjab.

In the previous proceeding, the Court had directed the ADGP (Prison) to file a detailed affidavit on self-clicked photographs allegedly taken from inside the jail by a murder accused.

The ADGP today apprised the bench of Justice Manjari Nehru Kaul that, "a letter...has been written to Secretary, Department of Jails, Government of Punjab to initiate departmental proceedings against Sh. Balkar Singh Bhullar, the then Superintendent of Central Jail, Ludhiana (now retired) under Rule 2.2 (b) of the Punjab Civil Services, Volume-ll, and against Sh. Manjit Singh Tiwana, under Rule 8 of The Punjab Civil Services (Punishment & Appeal) Rules, 1970 the then Superintendent Jail of New District Jail, Nabha and Central Jail, Patiala, who were found to be negligent while dispensing their duties as per the enquiry report."

A letter has also been written to Senior Superintendent of Police, Patiala to register FIR against the concerned inmates for illegally using mobile phones in various prisons of Punjab, added the ADGP.

The matter came in light while hearing a bail application of a murder accused, who is currently lodged in Central Jail, Patiala.

Justice Kaul had taken note of self-clicked photographs of the bail applicant, placed on record by the counsel for the complainant. It was submitted that the applicant-accused had been "blatantly and unabashedly circulating his photographs on the social media". In one of the photographs, applicant-accused along with other undertrials could be seen with a number of mobile handsets.

Pursuant to Court's serious objection to such activities in jail, an enquiry was conducted and as per the findings, murder accused Jagtej Singh "had illegally used mobile phone, during his stay at Central Jail Ludhiana, Patiala and New District Jail, Nabha."

ADGP (Prisons) further submitted that as per enquiry officer one inmate Anantpal Singh used a mobile to upload video of a barrack of Central Jail, Patiala as Instagram story on his ID.

It was also found that "concerned jail officers who were posted at the time of clicking and uploading of the pictures and video were negligent while dispensing their duties. It's a supervisory lapse on their part being Superintendents of the concerned jails, though some of the mobile phones had been recovered and FIRs had been lodged," added the ADGP.

Advocate Saurav Bhatia appeared for the for the complainant.

Advocate G.S. Sidhu for the petitioner.

Case Title: Jagtej Singh vs. State of Punjab