December 13, 2023
Saket Gokhale’s Zero Hour mention on the demand for providing lawyers for undertrials
Mr. Chairman, Sir, today I stand here as an MP, speaking for undertrial prisoners in India in this august House. Thanks to my leaders, Ms. Mamata Banerjee and Shri Abhishek Banerjee and also my party Trinamool Congress. I spent half of this year, that is, 2023 in the Sabarmati Central Jail in Gujarat as an undertrial prisoner. Today, I want to speak about something which is the dark underbelly of our democracy. I am going to start with a very small fact, Sir. What percentage of the prison population in India is under-trials? Is it 10 per cent, 20 per cent? No, Sir. About 77 per cent of our prisoners are under-trials, which means three out of four people in our jails are technically innocent until proven guilty. Now, let me inform this august House about what a day of an under-trial prisoner in India looks like. They are woken up at 6 o’clock in the morning with guards coming and kicking them with their boots. After that, lunch is served at 9 o’clock in the morning. That is lunch time, 9 o’clock. Then, dinner is served at 3 o’clock in the afternoon. And, what is dinner? It is two rotis. The rotis are like cement. You have to soak them in water for 30 minutes to make them edible and a bowl of boiled potatoes with mirchi powder on it. This food is unfit for human consumption, but that is what they are given. After giving dinner at 3.00 p.m., they don’t get any food till 9 o’clock the next morning. In a barrack meant for 40 people, 80 to 85 people are stuffed together. Sir, the standard solution for any prison guard is very simple. A prisoner comes with a concern, they tie him to a pole and beat him for 15 minutes so that he never opens his mouth again. Sir, the majority of under-trials in jail are there for petty offences. There was a guy in my barrack. He was in jail for two years because he stole a pouch of milk of Rs.30/-. But he does not have Rs.500/- for bail; so, he has been languishing in prison since the last two years. Sir, sexual assault is rampant. Patients with mental health are kept with the other prisoners. They get bullied and they also get sexually abused. Prison guards turn a blind eye to it. Legal aid is non-existent because ten legal-aid lawyers in one prison. Sir, ten legal-aid lawyers in one prison. Sir, I seek your protection. Sir, I seek your protection and some time. Sir, I seek your protection. You have not been to jail. I have been to jail. Sir, please stop the clock; he is taking my time. Sir, legal aid is non-existent. Ten legal aid lawyers in a jail, there are 3,000 under-trial prisoners. वेकहाँसेकाम करेंगे? Sir, to get to a lawyer, it takes six months. All branches … सर, हमेंछ: महीनेदाल-चावल नहीं िमला। The executive locks prisoners. Majority of them are Muslims, SCs, STs and OBCs. The Judiciary
