"A critical analysis on rights and administration of prisoners"

Dissertation – Synopsis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Academic

Requirement of Degree of Master of Laws (LL.M) in (Corporate Law)
At

Amity University, Rajasthan

SUBMITTED BY
Name

UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF

Name

Professor,

Amity Law
School,

Amity University, Rajasthan

SP -1, kant kalwar, RIICO Industrial Area, NH-

11C, Jaipur, Rajasthan 303007

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 Table of Content

1. Introduction…………………………………………………………………………..3
2. Literature Review………………………………………………………………….....6
3. Research Gap………...………………..…………………………………………...…9
4. Research Objective…………..……………………………………….…..…………10
5. Statement of Problem…..……………………….….…………...………………..…11
6. Hypothesis……………….……………………………….…………………………12
7. Research Question………………………………………………………………….13
8. Research Methodology……………………………………………………………..14
9. Scope and Limitations………………………………………………………………15
10. Tentative Chapterization……………………………………………………………16
11. Bibliography………………………………………………………………….……..17

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 INTRODUCTION

A prison is an institution where persons who have committed a crime and are awaiting trial
for any act that is primarily criminal in nature are detained. As per Sec 3 of prisoners Act,
1894, ‘Prison’ means “any place used under the general or special orders of State
Government for the detention of prisoners, and includes all land and buildings appurtenant
thereto.” Taking care of prisons in India is a government job. This is covered by item 4 of the
state list in the seventh schedule to the Constitution of India, which is called the state list. The
state government is in charge of prison management and administration, as well as the
Prisoners Act 1894 and the Prison Manuals of the state where the prison is. The Central
Government gives the State Government a lot of rules and guidelines about how to run the
prisons and keep them safe and secure. The Supreme Court of India has come up with three
main rules for how to run prisons in India.

It includes:

 Inside a prison, a person doesn't become a non-person.

 People have the right to enjoy all of their human rights, but they can't do so while
they're in prison.
 There is no reason to make the process of being imprisoned even more painful.

The SC has also looked into various matters inside prisons such as overcrowding, lack of
proper medical care and other facilities for the prison inmates, lack of free legal aid available
for them which is provided under the provisions of the Constitution of India. We are all
aware that India's crime rate is rapidly rising. However, there are no enough facilities in our
country's numerous jails to accept such a person, at least in terms of providing conditions for
a good life within the prisons. Even though there are regulations and procedures surrounding
the jail system and administration, many of them are not adequately implemented owing to
the current state of prisons in India. According to several polls, around 80% of inmates are on
trial, with the other 20% consisting of those convicted of various charges as well as women
prisoners. The current state of many jails is that the prison officials are unable to address the
needs of the inmates. In light of such circumstances, it is reasonable to conclude that it
constitutes a significant violation of inmates' fundamental rights.

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As India is a democratic country, each and every person is entitled to certain fundamental
rights depending upon the nature of his living. As far as the prisoners are concerned, they are
denied of certain rights available to other citizens in our country. But there are certain other
rights exclusively for prisoners which include:

 Right to speedy trial

 Right against solitary confinement, handcuffing and bar fetters and protection from
torture

 Right to meet relatives, friends and consult legal practitioner of his choice

 Right to reasonable wages in prison

 Right to expression

 Right for reasonable health care

Our criminal justice system is solely focused on a deterrence approach in dealing with crimes
and offenders. It focuses on a punitive approach in which the penalty for a crime must serve
as a warning to society as well as offer some type of reformative policy. In this context,
numerous rehabilitation mechanisms that may be used in prisons assist inmates in changing
their character and attitude, as well as becoming conscious of the consequences of the crime
they committed on society. Rehabilitation may take numerous forms, including:

 Organizing numerous prisoner awareness initiatives on a regular basis

 Conduct several therapy sessions for them so that their mental health improves.
 Various entertainment activities inside the jail grounds.
 Conducting social problems seminars so that inmates are informed of what is going
on outside the prison walls
 Increasing inmates' talents through organising a variety of small-scale businesses and
activities inside the institution
 By avoiding different forms of torture and third-degree measures, the ambiance of
prisons may be transformed into a more welcoming one.

In India, prisons and jail management are an unavoidable part of the criminal justice system.
According to several criminologists, no one is born a criminal; rather, his economic and
social circumstances make him a criminal. In light of such viewpoints, it is necessary to

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declare that both the inmates and the prison administration must be transformed in such a
manner that they do not feel alienated in this society, and that they have hope that they, too,
can change and contribute to the growth of their community. In order to make the inmates a
productive segment of society after their imprisonment, the involved prison authorities must
provide proper food, lodging, health care treatment, and other such essential requirements.

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LITERATURE REVIEW
1. Anita Yadav, “PRISONERS’ RIGHTS IN INDIA: AN ANALYSIS OF LEGAL
FRAME WORK”, 6 RG (2018).
The fundamental issue in India with regard to jail management has resulted in
a slew of human rights issues and problems, including rights to health care,
cleanliness, food, custodial abuse, and death. Because jail is one of the most
important aspects of the criminal justice system, there is a need to reform the
whole criminal justice system in this area. As a result, regulations relating to
arrest, bail, and case adjournment must be revised in light of the detainees'
human rights. In India, the law has extensive safeguards to protect the rights of
the accused in order to ensure that he receives a just, fair, and unbiased trial.
However, these rights are not accessible to those accused who are poor, and
they are only available to those in the top level of society who have the
financial resources to take advantage of them. As a result, poor individuals
accused of crimes are unable to get justice; on the other hand, persons with
resources are able to obtain the clutches of the law and hold the key to open
the door of justice. Furthermore, the criminological underpinning of
punishment is social defence. The trial judge has mixed up the difference
between a correctional approach to jail treatment and a nominal sentence that
borders on decriminalisation of significant social offences. In light of this, the
paper emphasises on the rights of inmates, including their constitutional and
human rights. It contains a number of Supreme Court decisions impacting the
rights of inmates.
2. Dr JAI SHANKAR OJHA, “THE RIGHTS OF PRISONERS AND THEIR
ABBUSE IN INDIA: A CRITICAL ANALYSIS”, 6(2) IJCRT 2018.
It is now widely agreed that people who are meant to be detained are in jail as
punishment: that they lose their freedom, and that they should not be punished
further by vindictive conditions, distress, or aggression. This article looks at
how this standard is used even though there are different kinds of confinement.
It looks at interviews with people who have been held in Indian prisons to
figure out which rights are important to detainees and which should be
protected the most. The article talks about how important it is for the people in
the study to show respect and recognise human great8).ness. It also talks about
how respect can be shown in the prison setting.

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 3. P. C. Harigovind, “The Indian Jurisprudence on Prison Admistration and the
Legislative Concerns”, 9(5) IOSR-JHSS 24-29 (2013).
Even though there were flaws in the law, the judiciary on its own had made a
big difference in prison administration, ensuring that prisoners had basic
human rights. The international law on human rights says that many of those
rights are valid. People don't call it "penal reform" if they make changes to the
way the prison system works. The idea of penal reform had changed so that
there should always be a link between penal reform and the reformatory theory
of punishment. This is how it used to be. There is no longer a time when
prison administration was done without people's help. Now, it is always a
subject of judicial review. Indian prisons are just as corrupt as any other public
places. The new law should also be careful not to let prison corruption get out
of hand. It is true that the prisoner is more likely to change if he can see that
the punishment is fair than if he can't.  There should always be room in the law
for prisons to treat people according to what they've done.
4. PATHAN DABEER FARDEEN, “Legislation Frameworks of Prison
Administration and Prison Legislations”, 4(2) IJLMH (2021).
In India, there have been a lot of laws and acts that have been passed to make
prisons better, but there are still a lot of people who are still on trial behind
bars. There are many rules in the Indian Constitution and the Code of Criminal
Procedure that protect and help the people who are in prison. Steps are to be
taken to improve the lives of prisoners, especially those who are going through
trials. So, India should keep making positive changes for the people who are in
prison.
5. A Coyle, “A Human Rights Approach to Prison Management: A Handbook for
Prison Staff” (2002).
Human rights can be an important part of prison management, but how can
this happen? What are the things that make up a good prison management
model? This is a handbook that was made by the International Centre for
Prison Studies. It looks at examples from all over the world and sets out
standards that the international community usually agrees to through the UN.
The handbook shows that there is a common set of things that make up a good
prison management model when they are all together. This is what the
handbook says. If you work with prisoners every day, this book is for you.

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 Prisons should be run in an ethical way that respects the humanity of everyone
who is involved: prisoners, prison staff, and visitors. They should be open to
the public so that people can make sure that proper procedures are in place,
and civil society is encouraged to help with this. People in prison should be
able to communicate with the outside world and have a "semblance of family
life," as well as be able to get outside information from newspapers, TV or the
internet, as well as be presumed innocent before they go to trial.

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RESEARCH GAP
The emergence of Prisoners Rights in India is an offshoot of the various statutes, human
rights, fundamental rights and the judicial pronouncements. This indicates that the issue does
not lie with lack of awareness here but with the lack of enforcement of these statutes, rights,
judicial pronouncements, etc. There is lack of research over the lack practical implementation
and the same has been dealt with hereby.

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RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

1. To analyse whether the Constitutional rights of an ordinary citizen which are extended to
the prisoners are full- fledged in all aspects, except those that are to be necessarily denied
because of the condition of imprisonment.

2. To analyse the necessity of incorporating the rights guaranteed to ordinary citizens under
the Constitution which are extended to the prisoners, in the existing relevant statutes, laws,
rules, and regulations regarding the management of prisons and treatment and supervision of
prisoners.

3. To analyse whether there is any gap between the theory and practice in implementing the
Rights of Prisoners in the day-to-day administration of Prisons.

4. To analyze whether it is considered as a mercy or reluctance or denial on the part of the

prison authorities in extending the rights to the prisoners.

5. To suggest measures and recommendation for the better implementation of the rights of
prisoner.

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STATEMENT OF PROBLEM

The fundamental issue in India with regard to jail management has resulted in a slew of
human rights issues and problems, including rights to health care, cleanliness, food, custodial
abuse, and death. Because jail is one of the most important aspects of the criminal justice
system, there is a need to reform the whole criminal justice system in this area. Hence, the
present study will be relevant as the researcher will be focusing upon the legal loophples and
how they practically impact the scenario at large.

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HYPOTHESIS

Taking into account, the above said objectives, the following hypothesis is formulated: The
emergence of Prisoners Rights in India is an offshoot of the Judicial Activism /
pronouncement / Judgement by extending the Constitutional Rights multi – dimensionally but
the same still needs to be made a reality and not merely be left to exist in the law books.

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RESEARCH QUESTION

The researcher aims at answering the following questions:

1. What role do the fundamental rights play in determining the manner in which
prisoners are treated?
2. How practically relevant have been statutes in prison administration?
3. Whether the judicial pronouncements made in support of prisoners have had any
practical relevance?
4. What can be the probable suggestions in order to improve the jails in our country?

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RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

The present research has been undertaken through the doctrinal method. Doctrinal research is
a kind of study that is sometimes referred to as "regular judicial research." Doctrine is a Latin
word that meaning "to educate, read, or comprehend." Doctrinal research is the study of
constitutional principles, or "it asks what the rule is on a particular issue." It's all about
delving into legal theory and how it's developed and used. This form of research has a
restricted range of themes. Whether substantive domains of law, such as civil law, criminal
law, torts, or contract; politics or the goal of rights, duty, responsibility, and justice, to
mention a few, the core of law; concepts behind it are particular. In doctrinal work, the
analyst also applies theories of judicial interpretation to investigate legal concepts. This style
of inquiry is also known as pure research. Case law, legislation, and other legal texts will be
the focus of a doctrinal analytical approach. The procedure does not aim to investigate the
Statute's impact or application. Instead, the doctrinal approach focuses on the law as a written
object that can be differentiated and understood by legal sources.

The following measures are included in this procedure, which is based on the settlement of a
particular legal issue:

 putting together crucial information

 Recognizing legal issues
 Examining issues in order to find legislation
 Examining papers and books Legal dictionaries, reference books, journals, reform of
the law, and policy papers are all covered in this journal.
 Finding original sources of information, such as legislation, delegated legislation, and
case law
 a list of all the issues in the situation
 To come to a momentary decision.

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 SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS

Considering the fact that the topic is of current and universal relevance, the researcher shall
be dealing with it in an in-depth manner but due to lack of resources, it will not be possible to
conduct surveys or interviews and thereby include their analysis in the dissertation.

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TENTATIVE CHAPTERIZATION

Chapter 1: Synopsis

This chapter will contain the research questions, introduction, hypothesis, literature review,
scope and other relevant building blocks for the dissertation.

Chapter 2: Tracing the history of prisons, Evolution and management of prisons and
treatment of prisoners

As the title suggests, the researcher shall be dealing with the different ways and approaches
towards the prisoners at different points of time in history.

Chapter 3: Human rights with reference to Constitution of India, human rights commissions
and international covenants

The research will hereby conduct an in-depth analysis of the overall jurisprudence on prison
administration and rights with respect to human rights and constitutional rights.

Chapter 4: Emergence of the rights of prisoners-Judicial Activism

The judicial approach on our subject matter will be dealt with here.

Chapter 5: Government policies on prison rights and administration

The content in the chapter will on lines of the title made.

Chapter 6: Conclusion and suggestions

The researcher shall be concluding the study here by making the relevant suggestions and
answering the research questions and hypothesis.

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 BIBLIOGRAPHY

 Bhagwati, Justice PN.:“ Human Rights in Criminal Justice System”, JILI, Vol. 27,
1,1985, p-8.
 Jaswal, P.S. and N. Jaswal, “Right to Personal Liberty and Handcuffing: Some
Observations”, Journal of Indian Law Institute, Vol.33, No.2, April-June 1991, p 246.
 Rai, Dr H.S.: “Compensatory Jurisprudence and Victims ofCrime”, O.Z.J.,2004, p-
233.
 Srivastava, R.S. : “ Prisons; Some Organisational Aspect”, Jr ofCorrectional Work,
Vol 23,1977, p-8.
 Anita Yadav, “PRISONERS’ RIGHTS IN INDIA: AN ANALYSIS OF LEGAL
FRAME WORK”, 6 RG (2018).
 Dr JAI SHANKAR OJHA, “THE RIGHTS OF PRISONERS AND THEIR ABBUSE
IN INDIA: A CRITICAL ANALYSIS”, 6(2) IJCRT 2018.
 P. C. Harigovind, “The Indian Jurisprudence on Prison Admistration and the
Legislative Concerns”, 9(5) IOSR-JHSS 24-29 (2013).
 PATHAN DABEER FARDEEN, “Legislation Frameworks of Prison Administration
and Prison Legislations”, 4(2) IJLMH (2021).
 A Coyle, “A Human Rights Approach to Prison Management: A Handbook for Prison
Staff” (2002).

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