Foreign inmates protest against rice & ragi, demand wheat-based food

BENGALURU: A group of foreign inmates at the Parappana Agrahara central prison have launched a protest demanding food appropriate to their eating habits while refusing to eat rice and millet balls they are corrently being served.

Earlier, foreign prisoners at the penitentiary were served food based on counselling and medica prescription. The breakfast menu had bread-jam-milk combo and upma while lunch and dinner had chapati, sambar rice and mille balls. Prison authorities have can celled bread and chapati, leaving the foreign inmates with rice items like tomato rice (Monday), lemon rice (Tuesday), poha (Wednesday) puliyogare (Thursday), vangibath (Friday), vegetable rice (Saturday) and veg pulao (Sunday).

Some of the foreign prisoners are now demanding wheat-based food.

According to the prison manual, foreign prisoners should be kept in a separate cell to avoid clashes with local prisoners. At Parappana Agrahara, the recently-constructed foreign prisoners' cell has a capacity of 40. This year, however, the prison has 60 foreigners.

Minor clashes were reported between foreign and local inmates at the jail after the recent arrest of a Sudanese student on charges of mowing down a 35-year-old woman and the subsequent arrest of four others for attacking a Tanzanian student in Soladevanahalli. As a result, foreign prisoners are demanding a separate cell to stay away from the locals.

DIG and Chief Superintendent of the jail G Veerabhadra Swamy refused to comment. A senior official told ET: “We can't serve whatever they demand. They have to eat what is served to other prisoners. We can't give them pizzas and burgers.We expect them to adjust to Indian foods.“ V S Raja, a retired DIG of the prisons wing, said most foreign prisoners find it difficult to get used to jail food. “Most of them eat wheat and maize. Prison officials should serve them what they eat to begin with.Over a period of time, they will adjust to local food. Parappana Agrahara serves non-vegetarian food once a week. Foreigners also like raw vegetables,“ Raja said.

Bosco Kaweesi, a city-based activist from Uganda fighting for the rights of Africans, urged the government to provide a separate budget for foreign prisoners. “It is the basic duty of the government to treat prisoners in a good way , allowing them to reform. Authorities should provide proper food, else prisoners will suffer. There are chances of death due to indigestion,“ he cautioned.