The Supreme Court has issued new guidelines for the sake of humanity for elderly and dead prisoners in the jails of the country. A specific policy will be formulated for their speedy release. The Supreme Court has directed all states and Union Territories to implement it.
A division bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta set a deadline of three months for formulating the policy.
The Supreme Court passed this landmark judgment on a petition filed by the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA). The Supreme Court said on Thursday that the entire application process for speedy release of prisoners will be completed through the digital ‘e-prison’ portal.
This portal will have automatic alerts and deadline monitoring, thereby enabling the completion of work within the stipulated time. In addition, the portal will be able to generate its own compliance report (compliance report). This will help the State Government and State Legal Services authorities to monitor the matter However, the Supreme Court has said that all personal information of the prisoners will be kept confidential
The Supreme Court has sought the Centre’s cooperation in developing this digital infrastructure. The National Information Science Center (NIC) under the Union Ministry of Law and Justice, the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology have been directed in this regard. The Center will assist the states in providing necessary technical assistance, digital infrastructure, software development, maintenance and training of personnel.
The court clearly noted that new policies formulated by states and union territories should clearly state the eligibility criteria and legal process for release of prisoners. There should be no confusion. A uniform and precise definition of what prisoners’ physical condition would be considered to be ‘at least sick’.