By now it has become amply clear that the crumbling, crowded and filthy prison cells pose grave security and health risks. Besides Poudel’s killing, back in March, Chairman of National Television Yunus Ansari was shot at by an armed man inside the Central Jail at Sundhara, supposedly the most secure prison in the whole country. Prisoners are reportedly running drug cartels inside Dillibazaar Prison. This isn’t surprising as law and order inside the jails have been severely undermined by overcrowding and the failure of prison administrators (and those higher up) to instill adequate security provisions.
Experiments suggest that as the number of people within a confined space increases, the likelihood of violence goes up exponentially too. Hence the convicts cannot be held solely responsible for their aggressive behaviors now and then. Given the conditions, any other person in their position is likely to have been similarly disposed. Really, it is hardly their fault that the facilities built for just over 6,000 prisoners in 2001 is now being used to house nearly 13,000.
All this highlights an urgent need to set in motion the long-shelved prison reforms. First, there is no alternative to increasing the number of prison cells in order to accommodate the burgeoning number of criminals. Second, it is important that the notorious police-criminal nexus in jails be broken; it is hard to see how the assailants of Poudel and Ansari could have gained access without some help from the inside. As vital will be maintenance of optimum sanitary standards and availability of adequate food and other objects of daily needs. And those who want to study must be helped in their quest. Education can be an important tool in reform of criminals as it empowers them with alternative career paths once they are out. Given the recent developments, vital reform in prison management can no longer be postponed.
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