In the internet era, it seems that the jail authorities are depending on “ancient modes” of communication through “pigeons”, said the Supreme Court
After noticing the delay in releasing people who have been granted bail, the Supreme Court on Friday asked state governments to inform them as to how many prisons in their territory have internet connections and by when jails will be equipped with facilities to ensure the speedy release of prisoners.
“A secure electronic transmission mechanism for orders regarding bail will be soon devised so that it reaches the jail authorities in minimum time to facilitate the quick release of inmates who have been granted bail in a case,” said the Chief Justice of India (CJI) Nuthalapati Venkata Ramana who headed the SC bench.
The top court said that the jail authorities are relying on “ancient modes” of communication through “pigeons”, in the internet era. The court’s intention was to inform the authorities to speed up the bail release process.
The bench also asked its Secretary-General to consult Amicus Curiae (Friend of the court) senior lawyer, Dushyant Dave and Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta for trying to make some immediate arrangement of secure direct electronic mode of communication from Supreme Court to jails.
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The top court said that is not clear yet whether the age, comorbidity and other conditions of prisoners have been considered in deciding their release during the pandemic to prevent the spread of Covid among inmates by the High Powered Committees (HPCs).
The Supreme Court on Thursday had taken suo motu cognizance of delay in releasing convicts by prison authorities even after being granted bail by courts.
The apex court, on July 8, had granted interim bail to 13 convicted prisoners, keeping in view the fact that they were declared as juveniles by the Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) at the time of the commission of the offence and they had already served 14 years of jail sentence. They are currently lodged in Agra Central Jail in Uttar Pradesh, on personal bond.
However, the Uttar Pradesh authorities delayed the release of these prisoners, who were released after four days. The prison authorities stated that they did not receive the certified copy of the order by post.
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