Locked in, left out

Women who are incarcerated lack access to facilities for menstrual hygiene and sanitation, have their privacy compromised by CCTV surveillance and receive subpar nourishment. Tanisha Saxena writes about the need for reform in India’s correctional facilities for women

In a poignant account penned by Sanjoy Hazarika for The New York Times on February 29, 1988, the stark reality of women in Indian prisons was exposed. Hazarika’s report revealed a distressing panorama wherein incarcerated women were subjected to physical abuse, sexual molestation, and pervasive harassment. The narrative painted a grim picture of overcrowded and unsanitary conditions, with a disheartening number of women forced to rear their children within the confines of the prison walls.

Regrettably, more than three decades later, echoes of the same harrowing predicament persist within the precincts of Indian prisons. A disheartening revelation surfaces: Presently, there are around 1,650 women serving sentences in correctional facilities, accompanied by a collective total of 1,867 children. As per legal mandates, children of incarcerated mothers are mandated to remain within the prison precincts until attaining the age of six, contingent upon the mother’s status as the primary caregiver.

Overcrowded prison cells

As per a research paper titled “Female Prisoners in India: The Consequences of Triple Marginalisation” published by the Social and Political Research Foundation, women’s prisons in India, despite having a capacity of 5,593 inmates, are only 57.98 per cent occupied, leaving a substantial 40 per cent of the space unused. Notably, female prisoners are still housed in facilities designed for men during the British era. Tamil Nadu, having the highest number of women’s jails, exhibits an alarmingly low occupancy rate of 25.8 per cent. This situation poses challenges for female inmates, particularly in addressing the specific needs of menstruating, pregnant, and lactating women. Meanwhile, general prisons grapple with overcrowding, reaching an occupancy rate close to 120 per cent, disproportionately affecting female inmates.

The inadequacies extend beyond infrastructure to a significant shortage of female prison staff and policewomen. In 2018, only slightly over 11 per cent of the 60,024 jail staff and officers were women, and among the 1,914 medical staff in jails, a mere 252 were female officers.

Furthermore, as of the latest available data from 2017, female officers constituted just over 7 per cent of the total police force in India, as reported by the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative. This scarcity directly contributes to privacy concerns and issues such as unethical and illegal strip body searches, undermining the fundamental rights of female prisoners.

Advocate Subha Rajeswari explains, “Prison institutions constitute a vital component of the criminal justice system alongside the police and the judiciary, playing a crucial role in the reformation and rehabilitation of inmates for crime prevention and societal harmony. While incarceration is intended as a form of punishment and rehabilitation, the Indian prison system claims to prioritise the latter. However, challenges such as overcrowding hinder prisoners’ rights to a dignified and healthy life.”

She further accentuates, “The impact of imprisonment is particularly severe on the well-being of women and their children within jail premises, an aspect often overlooked in India. The low incidence of female criminality results in limited research focus on this aspect. Noteworthy issues affecting women in prisons include inadequate menstrual hygiene, substandard sanitation facilities, compromised privacy due to CCTV surveillance aimed at preventing heinous crimes like custodial rape, and below-par food quality. It is imperative to highlight these concerns and advocate for the rights of prisoners facing exploitation in various ways.”

Health & welfare of the accused 

Narasimha Reddy, a public policy expert and visiting faculty to several colleges and universities, says, “In the context of women prisoners in certain jails, there is a notable absence of segregation based on the nature or severity of their crimes, sentence length, or age. This lack of classification extends to offences ranging from habitual activities to heinous crimes, and even extends to the inclusion of younger female inmates with adults, aged 18 to 22, in shared enclosures. The limited available space further impedes efforts to segregate inmates, despite the potential influence or negative impact some may have on others. Notably, a significant portion of women incarcerated, particularly in specific regions like Amritsar, Bhatinda, and Sangrur, are detained under the NDPS Act, reflecting the prevalence of drug-related offences in these areas.”

Mothers incarcerated in Indian jails face significant challenges in providing appropriate food for their children, who can stay with them until the age of six if suitable arrangements outside cannot be made. The 2018 Women in Prisons report by the Ministry of Women and Child Development highlights the inadequate implementation of welfare provisions for women prisoners, emphasising the need for facilities tailored to children in their care. The report underlines the abnormality of life for children under six in custody and the negative impact on their socialisation. Despite the Model Prison Manual 2016 prescribing specific diets for mothers and children, adherence remains lacking, leading to a concerning environment for incarcerated mothers and their young children. 

Kapil Hooda (name changed on request), DSSSB Tihar Jail Warder, shares, “The prison environment, distinct from the outside world, operates under its own rules, hence its name. Our legal system often detains individuals abruptly, leaving them little time to process their situation. While this immediacy may be necessary for high-profile criminals, it can be disorienting for those picked up unexpectedly. In terms of amenities, there’s a noticeable disparity between policies and their effective execution. Although critics claim issues with prison food, it adheres to a meticulously planned diet based on individual weight and height. The subjective nature of taste preferences, like spice levels, is akin to variations in salt intake at home.”

He further adds, “Under the model prison manual, the government supplies essential food items, and transparency is required in reporting how these resources are utilised. Instances of police officers or guards pilfering prisoners’ food are rare. Addressing the nuances of the prison experience, including adequate surrender time for arrestees and improved policy implementation, could contribute to a more equitable system.”

Rights of a prisoner
When women face several transgressions impacting their fundamental and human rights within prison, there are some avenues available for recourse:
♦ Drafting a letter to the High Court.
♦ Seeking assistance from NGOs and voluntary agencies.
♦ Confessing to the Magistrate and District Judge during prison visits.
♦ Informing the inspector general of prisons during occasional visits.
♦ Obtaining legal aid through family outside the prison.
♦ Approaching the court of law during parole.
♦ In addition to constitutional rights (Article 14, 19, 20, 21, and 22), prisoners can also leverage statutory rights outlined in the Prisons Act, 1894, designed to safeguard their interests.

Men’s vs women’s correction

Sonal Kapoor, founder, CEO, of Protsahan India Foundation, an organisation working to end sexual and gender-based violence using arts and system linkages, explains, “Due to the scarcity of women’s correctional facilities in India, women prisoners often find themselves incarcerated far from their homes, pushing them further into isolation and abandonment by their families. This itself takes away the essence of rehabilitation and care post serving their sentences. This society may give a deviant man many more chances to correct his ways, but perhaps not even a second one to most women who may have erred.”

Regrettably, despite guidelines from the Women and Child Development Ministry, not all states have embraced these measures. “Some state prison manuals even prescribe fewer chapatis for women prisoners compared to their male counterparts! Furthermore, deeply ingrained caste hierarchies dictate work distribution in prisons as stated in state prison manuals,” adds Sonal. Meeting specific medical needs, such as providing mandated gynaecologists or ensuring adequate women staff, including guards, officers, doctors, nurses, and counsellors, remains a significant gap in women’s prisons.”

Sonal adds, “Rather than seeking hurried new reforms, first what’s imperative is the effective implementation of existing provisions outlined in the National Model Prison Manual 2016, which have much intent and potential to go a long way in improving the prison system for women in India.”

Just not enough...

According to the 2022 Prison Statistics from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), out of India’s 1,330 prisons, only 34 are designated as women’s jails. Among the 16 States and Union Territories with women’s jails, they collectively have a capacity of 7,080. These states and UTs, along with the corresponding number of jails and capacities, include Rajasthan (7) (998), Tamil Nadu (5) (2018), Kerala (3) (232), Andhra Pradesh (2) (280), Bihar (2) (202), Gujarat (2) (410), Punjab (2) (608), Uttar Pradesh (2) (540), Delhi (2) (680), Karnataka (1) (100), Maharashtra (1) (262), Mizoram (1) (96), Odisha (1) (55), Telangana (1) (260), Tripura (1) (25), and West Bengal (1) (314). Notably, the remaining 20 States and UTs did not have separate women’s jails as of December 31, 2022.