Over crowding in Tihar; HC issues notice to Centre, city govt

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court today issued notices to the Centre and the city government on a PIL on over-crowding in high-security Tihar Jail and seeking formulation of a policy to grant bail to prisoners facing trial for petty offences.

"Issue notice to respondents and fix it for hearing August 24," a bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justice Sanjiv Khanna said.

The public interest litigation, filed by lawyer Vijay Aggarwal, said "undertrials constitute a whooping 67 percent of the total prison population in India. There are 2,57.928 under trial prisoners in India."

The petition seeks formulation of a policy under which the release of prisoners, serving 7 years of imprisonment for the offence of cheating and forgery, be considered.

The persons, who are in jail during the trial for such offences, be also released on bail if they are in jail for more than a year, it said.

"The present system shows injustice, discrimination and violations of constitutional right which these undertrials suffer on account of the administration of the laws and rules, comprising the universal justice system in the country in a completely arbitrary and constitutionally impermissible manner," Aggarwal said.

The court, which also sought a response from the Director General Tihar Jail on the plea filed by the lawyer who also represents some of the accused in the 2G case.