SC issues guidelines on custodial deaths and serving prisoners

 The supreme court in suo motu action of takinf congizance of factual material  that steps are being taken in some form or the other by the Central Government and 26 AIR 2015 MP 212 W.P. (C) No. 406/2013 etc. Page 33 of 43 hopefully by the State Governments to ameliorate the conditions of prisoners across the country and thereby reduce the number of unnatural deaths commented that -" These steps give an impression that there is nothing to be seriously worried about. However, the statistics provided by the NCRB reflect the ground reality and dispel that impression. It is time for the State to go beyond projections through circulars and advisories and actually come to grips with reality as it exists in a very large number of prisons. What is practised in our prisons is the theory of retribution and deterrence and the ground situation emphasizes this, while our criminal justice system believes in reformation and rehabilitation and that is why handcuffing and solitary confinement are prohibited. It is this ‘rejection’ of the philosophy of our criminal justice system that leads to violence in prisons and eventually unnatural deaths."

The ful text can be read in the following link- http://sci.nic.in/supremecourt/2013/18545/18545_2013_Judgement_15-Sep-2017.pdf