Sunday, March 22, 2020

58 inmates given bail to decongest Madurai jail

TNN | Mar 22, 2020, 04.41 AM IST

Madurai: As many as 58 inmates of Madurai Central Prison were released on bail on Saturday in order to bring down congestion in the jail in the wake of Covid-19 scare. These inmates include two women, who were lodged in special prison for women, where 105 have been lodged.

The decision was taken at a special camp that took place on the prison premises, which was chaired by justice P N Prakash from Madurai bench of Madras high court. Madurai city police commissioner S Davidson Devasirvatham, south zone IG K P Shanmuga Rajeswaran, and Madurai district superintendent of police N Manivannan took part in the camp. A panel of judges from Madurai district court and officials from prison department also took part.

The 35-acre Madurai Central Prison, located in the heart of the city, has a capacity to accommodate around 1,300 inmates, but more than 1,550 inmates were lodged in the prison.

Deputy inspector-general of prisons D Pazhani told TOI that it was an initiative by the prison department and the judicial department. The inmates considered for release on bail was based on a report prepared by the police department. It was held in order to bring down the strength in the prison in the wake of Covid-19, he said.

There are around 960 convict prisoners and 630 remand prisoners in Madurai Central Prison. Out of the 630, the authorities released 58 inmates, DIG said.

Sources from the prisons department said that a camp will be held on Monday too in order to further bring down the numbers. The list of prisoners to be released was carefully selected based on the eligibility norms laid down under the law. It was scrutinized in such a way that these people will not create any unrest in society.

Meanwhile, various measures are being taken in the prisons department in order to prevent the spread of Covid-19 among inmates and one such measure was suspension of interview with their family members and lawyers for two weeks.

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