Jain food not served to accused in jail, court issues show-cause notice to Arthur Road jail superintendent

On May 9, Shah filed a plea before the special court stating that he is a follower of Jainism and had been following a strict diet based on the religious requirements. In his plea, Shah said that the food being served at Arthur Road jail was not as per his dietary requirements and was affecting his health, leading to him losing substantial weight. Allowing his plea, the special court on May 14, directed the jail authorities to provide him with “Jain food”.

“Considering the fact that the accused is a follower of Jainism, therefore, he is entitled to get diet accepted by Jain religion. Accordingly, the superintendent of Arthur Road jail is directed to provide Jain food to the accused while he is in custody,” the court order said.

On June 24, Shah again approached the court through his lawyer Viral Babar, and submitted that despite the clear direction from the court, he has not been provided Jain food. “As a result, the accused has been surviving solely on chapatis for more than a month, which has caused significant deterioration in his health. This non-compliance amounts to a violation of the Honourable court’s order and infringes upon the fundamental rights of the accused under Article 21 of the Constitution of India,” the plea seeking a show-cause notice said. The court issued notice to the superintendent and has sought a report by Friday.

Arthur Road jail superintendent, Harshad Ahirrrao said that food according to the dietary requirement of the accused had been provided to him. “We have provided him according to the dietary requirement, that is, Jain food-without onion, garlic. The accused was seeking food from home which we denied as there is no such court order,” he said.