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One of the state’s two central jails, which also houses the only women’s barracks, has been facing this problem for quite sometime now. Even the senior jail officials admitted that there was a serious security threat, particularly as the number of inmates is three times higher than the prison’s strength.
Speaking on the condition of anonymity, a senior official said that the jail needs a superintendent, a senior jailor and 56 constables. "There are several security points which are presently unmanned because of this shortage. Also, the jail was meant for 751 convicts but understaffed as we are we have to manage 2,247," he said, adding that the shortage had affected the women's barracks as well.
For the last four months, the jail, deemed as the second best after the Sabarmati Central Jail in Ahmedabad, is being run by a senior jailor and not by the prescribed Superintendent or Deputy Superintendent.
The last IPS officer in the facility was former superintendent K G Bhatti, who was transferred to Surat four months ago. Even he acknowledged the problems, saying, "During my tenure, I had sent several communiqués to the DG office and the Home Ministry, but to little avail."
On January 19, one Jayesh Shah was found dead in his cell after he was sentenced to a 15-day term for drunken and violent behaviour. But jail authorities refused to divulge details about the events surrounding his death. This was followed by two suicide attempts on January 31, when a rape convict, Bharat Patel, slit his wrists allegedly as he was being transferred to another jail. Later, another inmate Mahasivam Mugiyam stabbed himself in his throat, stomach and wrists for a similar reason.
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