Arvind Kejriwal
– Photo: ANI
Expansion
The Delhi government has taken an important decision to provide compensation of Rs 7.5 lakh to the families of prisoners who die due to unnatural causes in jail. The aim of this initiative is to ensure justice and accountability in jails. And it is being considered an important step towards the protection of human rights.
The Delhi government has sent a proposal to Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena for this decision..which will be implemented after getting approval. Under this policy, this compensation will be provided on unnatural deaths caused due to fights between prisoners in jail, beating by jail staff, or negligence of medical and paramedical officers. However, this compensation will not apply in cases of suicide, attempt to escape from jail, custody outside jail, or deaths due to natural causes, disasters or diseases.
Delhi Home Minister Kailash Gehlot described this decision as a symbol of the government’s commitment towards reforming the prison system and protecting human rights. He said, “Providing compensation to the family in case of death under unnatural circumstances in jail is an important step towards strengthening the protection of human rights.”
Under this policy, the concerned jail superintendent will have to submit a detailed report, which will include the magistrate’s inquiry report, postmortem report, final cause of death, medical history at the time of admission to the jail, and details of any medical treatment provided before death. This report will be sent to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) for information.
After this, a committee headed by the Director General of Prisons and comprising Additional Inspector General of Delhi Prisons, Resident Medical Officer, DCA and Law Officer will review the report and decide on releasing the compensation amount as per rules.
This policy also provides that the compensation amount will be recovered from the salary of the guilty jail officials so that responsibility and accountability can be ensured. This step has given a new hope to the Delhi government towards reforming the prison system and protecting human rights.
