House arrest as a punitive measure

Source – The Indian Express

Syllabus – GS 2 – Social Justice in India

Synopsis – House arrest as a means to reducing jail congestion in the wake of COVID-19 spread.

Introduction

• Every human being has a right to life, the right to dignity, and the right to a healthy environment. But, the inmates are considered second-class citizens with no rights. It is evident by overcrowding in prisons, poor hygienic conditions, and a lack of statutory oversight.
• As a result, the Supreme Court recommended that the courts should consider placing offenders under house arrest. It will reduce prison overpopulation as COVID-19 spreads.
• The judgment was based on the plea for default bail filed by activist Gautam Navlakha [which was rejected].

Prison condition in India-

Alarming statistics of prisons in India

• Overcrowded due to a huge number of under-trial cases. On average at least 118 percent higher than the prison limit.
  • The data shows that at the end of 2016, there were 4,33,033 people in prison, of whom 68% were under trials.
• Poor sanitation and hygienic conditions in jails and absence of a mandated statutory mechanism of prison oversight.

SC ruling-

Due to the rapid spread of COVID-19 in jails, the SC urges courts to use the option of house arrest in selective cases. Age, health conditions, and antecedents of the accused would be criteria to consider.

The SC refers to how western societies are known to employ house arrest primarily to deal with troublesome political dissenters and how house arrest in India has its roots in laws providing for preventive detention.

Following this ruling, the Calcutta High Court imposed house arrest on three serving TMC-led Bengal government elected officials and ministers. The court even allowed them to perform some official duties under supervision.

What is house arrest?

The term is used as a means of restricting movement and ensuring surveillance when an individual or groups of individuals are subject to preventive detention.

• In the Western world, some societies use post-trial and conviction as confinement with surveillance.
• Elsewhere, house arrest has been used to repress political dissent before trial.

Famous cases of House arrest in history-

• Paul the Apostle – In medieval Europe, St Paul [at the age of 60] was granted house arrest for two years when he continued his profession.
• Italian philosopher, astronomer, and mathematician Galileo Galilei – In 1963, the Roman church sentenced Galilei to indefinite imprisonment. He was kept under house arrest until his death in 1642.

Issues with house arrest

• Lack of legal understanding of political prisoner –
  • Only West Bengal passed a law [West Bengal Correctional Services Act, 1992] that provides not just for residence in correctional homes but, under Section 19(4) special categorization of a prisoner as a political prisoner.
• Some believe that house arrest probation is too lenient

Way forward-

With the proliferation of COVID-19 and seeing the abysmal condition of Indian jails and the lack of political will to ensure effective oversight, the option of house arrest must be viewed as a punitive measure.