COVID-19- Jail Inmates Not Being Vaccinated In The State Of Assam: Gauhati High Court Seeks Govt's Response Within 3 Weeks

Registering the matter as a suo moto PIL (pursuant to a letter sent by an NGO, Nilima Studio) the Bench of Chief Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia and Justice Kalyan Rai Surana, issued this order.

The plea before the Court

The letter has been sent by a unit of Studio Nilima, namely Pratidhwani, which has been conducting regular visits to the correctional homes including the Central jails at Guwahati, Tezpur, and Jorhat along with the District Jails (in the State of Assam) in collaboration with Assam State Legal Service Authority and the respective District Legal Service Authority.

The letter states that during recent inquiries of Pratidhwani, it came to know that in spite of the COVID-19 vaccination drive being carried out all over the country and that the Jail authorities and the officials working in different district jails of Assam have been vaccinated, the inmates have not been vaccinated to date except in Central Jail, Silchar.

Importantly, the plea states,

"In view of the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic being on the rise and with the increasing number of positive cases being detected each passing day, it has become imperative that the vaccine is made available to the inmates in the different district and central jails of the State who are above 60 years of age and the inmates between 45 to 60 years of age with co-morbidities."

Further, the letter states that Article 14 and 21 of the Constitution of India are guaranteed to all persons including prisoners and that in a catena of decisions, the Courts have held that fundamental rights, which also include basic human rights, continue to be available to a prisoner during his incarceration in prison.

"Considering the fact that the vaccination drive being a part of the policy decision taken by the Government, the same needs to be implemented uniformly at the earliest, particularly considering the increasing number of new positive Covid-19 cases being detected every day," the plea adds.

Lastly, the letter submits that that the facilities that are available to a normal citizen and the precautions that they can take are not available to the inmates in different districts and central jails of the State.

"Under such circumstances, the inmates are at a greater risk of the virus. As such, it becomes furthermore essential and necessary to provide vaccination to the inmates on an urgent basis. The same not having been done has led to the violation of the fundamental rights of the inmates guaranteed under Article 14 and 21 of the Constitution of India. Such inaction on the part of the authorities is also violative of their own operational guidelines," concludes the letter.