New Delhi, August 31, 2020 (PPI-OT): Thousands of Kashmiris illegally detained after the India’s move of August 5, 2019, are at high risk of corona infection for being imprisoned in overcrowded jails of India. The latest data by the Delhi-based National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) reveals that these jails have housed 4.78 lakh prisoners against the actual capacity of 4.03 lakh.
Total number of prisons in India were 1,361, 1,339 and 1,350 at the end of 2017, 2018 and 2019, respectively. The occupancy rates during the period rose steadily at 115.1 per cent, 117.6 per cent and 118.5 per cent, respectively. The number of prisoners lodged in various jails increased to 4.78 lakh in 2019 from 4.50 lakh in 2017 and 4.66 lakh in 2018 as on December 31 of each year, according to the data.
It is worth mentioning here that thousands of Kashmiris including young boys were arrested from Indian illegally Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir after August 5, 2019 when Indian illegally scrapped Kashmir’s status and shifted them to different jails in India.
Now that India is one of the fastest growing coronavirus infected countries in the world, the relatives of Kashmiri prisoners have expressed concern over the well-being of their near and dear ones languishing in Indian jails. They urged international human rights organizations to prevail upon India to release the detainees especially amid surge in COVID-19 cases in India.
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