PRISONERS RIGHTS

• Changes in a society demand changes in the way of maintaining social order.  The techniques of social control are also adjusted to changed situations as no system of social control works perfectly.  The functions of prisons have also changed from custodial, to coercive, to corrective. The great Mahatma Gandhi strongly said that “prisons should be changed into hospitals to give treatment to offenders, to bring them on the correct line, officer of the jail should be changed into a doctor, the offenders shall feel that officers of the jail are their friends”.   In early India conditions of prisons were harsher than animals and prisoner were treated with hatred.  There was no uniform code to give punishment.  The meaning of the punishment itself was to crush the prisoner. The jailors were normally cruel persons.

• But in the year of 1835 Jail Commission was constituted, and in 1838 due to the efforts of Lord McCauley First Jail Reformative Committee was constituted which recommended for constitution of a central jail for those who are undergoing imprisonment for more than one year.  Then in 1862 Second Jail Reform Committee was constituted.  This committee suggested improvement of living accommodation, cloths and foods of prisoners, medical officers and medical facilities at every central jail. Jail commission of 1888 reviewed the earlier reports and made an exhaustive inquiry into all matters connected with jail administration and on this basis the prison Act was passed and is governing the management and administration of prisons in India.

• In the year of 1919-20 Indian Jail Reforms Committee was constituted under the head of Sir Alexander Cardio. This committee studied the jails in the country and abroad and accepted that a criminal cannot be reformed by hardened measures. Till you are not treating the criminals humanitarianism, reform is impossible. Actual reformation is in the criminals, is only possible when criminal feels himself that he has done wrong. This committee suggested many important points for the reformation of the prisons i.e. classification, jail should be looked up by trained officers, medical facilities etc. The report of this committee was treated as turning point of the prison reforms in the country.