The state government on Wednesday told the Bombay High Court that it would not be possible to provide treatment to HIV patients inside jails. The court was hearing a bail application filed by an HIV-positive convict. The petitioner is a murder convict presently lodged in Punes Yerawada Jail. He has filed a bail application on the ground that he cannot get treatment for AIDS in prison. The government submitted that the additional chief secretary of health department held a meeting with Maharshtra State Aids Control Society (MSACS) officials a few days ago but concluded that in-house treatment centre for jails was not feasible. Division bench of Justice B H Marlapalle and Justice Roshan Dalvi asked additional project director of MSACS and its joint director to be present in court on August 7. Additional public prosecutor Vitthal Konde-Deshmukh said that lack of police support in taking prisoners to hospitals was a major problem for HIV positive convicts.
