Maharashtra tables prison reform bill with focus on rehabilitation, reintegration

Besides providing for open prisons and open colonies to assist prisoners in their rehabilitation and reintegration into the society, the bill also provides for prison segregation of various categories of prisoners and for their special needs such as female, transgender, undertrial prisoners, convicted prisoners, high-security prisoners, habitual offenders, recidivist prisoners, young offenders, civil prisoners, etc.

The bill has provided for special provisions relating to women prisoners, transgender prisoners, including separate women wards in prison hospital and after care rehabilitation services to all needy prisoners released from a prison with a view to ensure their rehabilitation and reintegration into society.

The bill has a provision for constitution of ‘Undertrial Review Committees’ for every district to conduct periodical review of all undertrials in all the prisons in the district, take measures for speedy disposal of cases and make appropriate recommendations to the trial courts and ensure there is no discrimination in the classification, segregation and allotment of any duty or work in prison on the basis of caste of prisoners and on the ground of disability of prisoners, and provide appropriate healthcare, including psychiatric and psychological services as well as access to rehabilitation program therapies.

“With the passage of time and evolution of the ideology of reformation and rehabilitation of prisoners and information technology, these pre-independence archaic laws need to be repealed and replaced by a consolidated, progressive and robust Act which is in tune with contemporary modern day needs and correctional ideology,” said the statement of Objective and Reason.