Tihar Jail opposes plea seeking conjugal visits

Jail authorities said no such programme was offered in any closed jail in India. (File photo)

A PIL in the Delhi High Court seeking to uphold conjugal visits to jails as a fundamental right of prisoners and their spouses was opposed by Tihar Jail Thursday.

Jail authorities said no such programme was offered in any closed jail in India, and “instead, an opportunity to preserve family ties and marital stability is ensured through regular releases on parole/furlough/interim bail”.

Director-General of Tihar did not agree that “conjugal visits can help curb the menace of sexual crimes in city”. “How do sexual crimes committed outside prison have any relation with conjugal visits to prison as a solution to the menace,” the jail said in an affidavit before a bench headed by Chief Justice D N Patel. It added: “Allowing conjugal visits in prisons… may not be feasible in light of the limited infrastructure, security concerns of visitors…”