Inmate’s death: HC notice to Faridkot jail authorities

Balwant Garg

Tribune News Service

Faridkot, September 19

The death of an inmate in Faridkot jail due to drug overdose has landed the district police and jail authorities in a spot.

The family of the deceased inmate has filed a writ petition in the Punjab and Haryana High Court, demanding Rs 50 lakh compensation and the fixing of responsibility of those who were negligent in checking the smuggling of drugs into the jail.

The High Court has issued notice to the state government, district police and jail authorities for November 7 to respond to this claim of Raj Rani, wife of deceased Vikram Singh, a Kotkapura resident.

In the petition, Raj Rani has attributed the death to negligence on the part of the district police and jail authorities as they failed to check the inflow of drugs into jails.

This death could be equated to a custodial one and as such, the family members of the deceased need to be compensated, claimed Raj Rani. Vikram Singh, a resident of Kotkapura town of Faridkot, was arrested on June 10, 2014 and the police seized 250 banned intoxicating tablets from him. In Faridkot jail, Vikram allegedly took an overdose of drugs — as these were freely available — and died on June 17, 2014.

The doctors treating him at Guru Gobind Singh Medical College and Hospital also confirmed the high dosage. After this writ petition in the High Court, the jail and police authorities in Faridkot now fear more such petitions as there have been over 20 such deaths in Faridkot jail in the past three years.

The failure to check smuggling of drugs into jail and this resulting in Vikram’s death violates Article 21 of the Constitution (protection of life and personal liberty), Raj Rani claims.