Bombay High Court Orders Maha Govt To Upload State's Prison Manual & Police Manual On Internet To Educate Citizens

The Bombay High Court on Thursday ordered the Maharashtra Government to put up the State's Prison Manual and also Police online so as to help prisoners and their relatives learn more about their rights, while in jail. 

A division bench of Justices Revati Mohite-Dere and Dr Neela Gokhale noted that the Prison Manual is one of the documents which is not on available on the internet and thus people are unaware of their rights.

"Why can't the prison manual be put up on the website because that is one document which nobody has...It must be made available to the public at large so that they can be aware of their rights... Scan (the hard copy) it and upload it maximum by next week," Justice Mohite-Dere ordered orally.

To this, Additional Public Prosecutor Prajakta Shinde said she will need instructions from the home department about whether the same can be uploaded on the internet or not. 

"Prison manual should be known to the public otherwise how will the public know their rights? Also, what is so confidential in the manual that you need instructions from Home Department? Everybody has the right to know their rights" Justice Mohite-Dere underscored. 

Advocate Vijay Hiremath, who was appearing before the judges, pointed out that even the Police Manual is a document, which is not available to the public at large and thus must be made available on the internet. 

Agreeing with Hiremath, the judges ordered Shinde to upload copies of Prison Manual and also Police Manual on the official websites and also to make use of social media for informing people about the major provisions of these Manuals. 

"Use social media for this... This would be rather proper usage of social media..." Justice Mohite-Dere remarked. 

Further, the bench indicated that it may constitute a committee to revamp the provisions of the police and the prison manuals as there may be several 'redundant provisions' however, the bench asked Shinde to first focus on uploading the two documents on the internet. 

Meanwhile, the bench also ordered Shinde to place on record, the total number of doctors, available in jails across Maharashtra, their qualifications, experience and even the vacancies. The bench has also ordered the prosecutor to spell out whether the State has 'requisite' funds for providing medicines and other important drugs to prisoners. 

"Do you have ambulances, well-equipped ambulances in every jails so that in case of emergencies, the prisoners can be carried safely to the nearest hospitals...Place that too on record," the judges ordered. 

The bench was hearing a petition filed by one Arun Bhelke, who along with his wife Kanchan Nanaware was an undertrial and lodged in Yerwada jail at Pune after they were arrested in a 2014 UAPA case. The wife, fell terminally ill by September 2020 yet her medical bails were rejected time and again by the Sessions Court. When she approached the High Court seeking medical bail, she was referred to a medical board, which recommended 'heart and lung' transplant. However, by the time any order could be passed, she died in January 2021 after spending nearly 7 years in prison.

Subsequently, her husband petitioned the High Court seeking directions to the State to scrupulously implement the Advisory of 2022 and also the provisions of the Maharashtra Prisons (Review of Sentences) Rules, 1972 so that in future, no other prisoner is made to suffer despite being terminally ill.

The judges are presently hearing final arguments in the plea by senior advocate Gayatri Singh assisted by advocates Susan Abraham and Sudha Bharadwaj. Also tagged along is another petition wherein the primary focus is on the mental health of prisoners. This petition is being argued by advocate Vijay Hiremath. 

The final hearing will continue on Monday (April 28).