annual report print final.qxd - Asian Centre for Human Rights
annual report print final.qxd - Asian Centre for Human Rights
annual report print final.qxd - Asian Centre for Human Rights
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
INDIA HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2005 Karnataka<br />
In December 2004, a convicted<br />
prisoner, Ramesh alias Shivkumar<br />
alleged ill treatment by authorities at the<br />
Gulbarga Central Jail. He alleged that he<br />
had been kept in solitary confinement<br />
since his transfer to the jail from Bijapur<br />
on 31 October 2004. Besides inflicting<br />
mental torture, he was not given proper<br />
food and medical attention. He<br />
complained of unhygienic cells,<br />
inadequate and sub-standard food, and<br />
absence of proper medical facilities to the<br />
inmates. He further complained that those<br />
who complain of any deficiencies to the<br />
Jail Superintendent during his rounds<br />
were ill treated by the officials later.<br />
Instead of providing medical assistance to<br />
the inmates who were ill, they were just<br />
locked up in their cells. He also prayed<br />
<strong>for</strong> immediate medical attention of a<br />
convict named Seenu, who was allegedly<br />
ill critically. 30<br />
Hundreds of undertrials were denied<br />
justice due to inordinate judicial delay. On<br />
24 February 2004, an undertrial Ravi alias<br />
Raviprasad, an accused involved in eight<br />
theft cases pelted a stone at the Principal<br />
Civil Judge (junior grade) Krishnaraj<br />
during hearing. Though the cases were<br />
registered two and a half years ago and he<br />
admitted to having committed the theft,<br />
the judge could not pass a judgement. He<br />
was produced time and again be<strong>for</strong>e the<br />
court. 31<br />
Hundreds of others however were not<br />
produced be<strong>for</strong>e the courts due to acute<br />
shortage of escort staff. In the Parappana<br />
Agrahara central jail, there were 3,585<br />
prisoners, and more than 65 per cent were<br />
undertrials. This meant that every day,<br />
around some 350 to 400 prisoners had to<br />
be produced be<strong>for</strong>e various courts in and<br />
around Bangalore. The escort staff<br />
strength was 227 and only 100 or 110<br />
prisoners were produced be<strong>for</strong>e the courts<br />
daily. Mr B S Abbai, Deputy Inspector<br />
General of Prisons, Parappana Agrahara<br />
Central Prison, stated that they were short<br />
of 200 policemen <strong>for</strong> escort duty. Taking<br />
into account the plight of undertrials, the<br />
High Court gave permission <strong>for</strong> sittings of<br />
criminal courts in the jail premises. The<br />
sittings were held on 14 August 2004, 22<br />
August 2004, 30 September 2004 and 1<br />
October 2004. In the first two sittings, as<br />
many as 594 cases were <strong>report</strong>edly closed.<br />
Around 100 persons were produced<br />
through video-conferencing daily. Yet, the<br />
agony of the undertrials continued. 32<br />
VI. <strong>Rights</strong> of the Child: Child<br />
Labour<br />
According to a UNICEF <strong>report</strong> titled<br />
“The State of the World’s Children 2005”,<br />
61.4 per cent of the children are deprived<br />
of toilet facilities, 16.5 per cent are<br />
severely underweight, 13 per cent do not<br />
use drinking water from a pipe or an hand<br />
pump, 13.7 per cent live in Kaccha houses<br />
and 10.1 per cent have not been to school<br />
in Karnataka. 33<br />
Child labour is rampant in the state.<br />
According to Minister of State <strong>for</strong> Labour<br />
and Haj, Tanvir Sait, there were over<br />
39,000 child labourers in the state, of<br />
which the Labour Department had<br />
123