The observation came while the court was hearing the bail application of a convict suffering from HIV. The convict died in jail due to lack of treatment.
A division bench of justice PB Majmudar and justice RG Ketkar suggested that instead of providing condoms to the prisoners, the jail authorities should either consider allowing conjugal visits, providing counselling and calling spiritual gurus who can explain to them the ill-effects of sex abuse.
“You [authorities] may rope in mahatmas or gurus or saints. Also sufis can be called for the benefits of Muslim prisoners. They can teach them good things in life and can make them good citizens,” observed justice Majmudar.
Advocate general Ravi Kadam and public prosecutor PA Pol informed the court that the National AIDS Control Organisation is already in the process of framing guidelines to curb HIV in jails. “It is not advisable to provide condoms in jails; it will only encourage such acts,” Kadam told the court.
On the other hand, amicus curiae (friend of court) advocate Anand Grover insisted that condoms should be provided in jails. “We cannot ignore the fact that prisoners do indulge in sexual activities inside the jail. Providing condoms will reduce the risk of them getting contracting the HIV,” Grover argued.
To this, the judges remarked: “They can be educated for not indulging in such risky acts, but if still they want to do it and die, we cannot help it. They [prisoners] also need to maintain some discipline. They are not freedom fighters to get extra facilities.”
Rajesh Bindra, advocate for the petitioner who died in jail due to HIV, argued that such prisoners should be allowed to come out on bail. “As per a study, prisoners suffering from HIV, who were allowed to come out on bail, have survived, while who were denied bail died in the jail. This is due to lack of medical facilities in the jails,” Bindra argued.
An affidavit filed by Medha Gadgil, principal secretary (appeal and security), home, said all the 38 posts of medical officers have been filled up. The affidavit also stated that Yerawada, Mumbai, Nashik, Nagpur and Thane central prisons have been provided with full-time Integrated Counselling and Testing Centre (ICTC) and 22 other prisons already have ICTC facilities where doctors visits once or twice in a week. The other jails will also be provided
with such facilities in the near future.
Advocate Yug Chaudhary, who too has been appointed as amicus curiae, argued that the government should be directed to provide at least one medical officer per jail across the state.
“There are 41 prisons in the state, but the government has sanctioned just 38 posts of medical officers. According to their affidavit, the government has appointed 38 medical officers in 21 jails, which means 20 jails do not have a single medical officer,” Chaudhary told the court.
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