Tihar breached: 2 escape, 1 caught

Delhi Police have launched a city-wide hunt for Javed, a repeat offender, who was serving a one-month punishment duty for physically assaulting a jail inmate. The two undertrials were lodged in Ward 4 of Jail No. 7, which is located in Block A, Barrack 5, meant for inmates aged between 18 and 21. Tihar Jail sources said they started their escape bid by scaling the wall of Jail No. 7 and jumping into Jail No. 8.

“We do not know exactly know when they scaled the 13-feet high wall. There were mounds of dirt and debris from repair work being carrying out by the PWD. Faizan used that to climb the wall and then hoisted Javed up,” a senior official who did not wish to be named said.

“The two then made a hole in a wall at Jail No. 8 and reached the prison’s 16-ft boundary wall. Once there, they used a mound of dirt to climb up and used towels to negotiate the barbed wire before climbing down and escaping,” the official said.

The wall they broke in Jail No. 8 was two feet thick. It had been built in 2004 and was crumbling, which is why the two managed to removed enough bricks to pass through, the official said.

Once they scaled the prison boundary, the duo landed in a semi-dry drain just outside, the official said. Javed got out of the drain and fled, leaving Faizan behind. Unsure of what to do, Faizan stayed in the drain.

“During a roll call at 7 pm, prison staff noticed the two were missing and an alert was sounded. Four teams were formed to look for them in the prison complex. When they found a hole in the wall and bits of towel on the barbed wire, security personnel scanned the area outside the jail. That’s when they found Faizan hiding in the drain,” the Tihar official said.

Officials said security personnel of the Indo-Tibetan Border Security Force are stationed in the area between Jail No. 8 and the boundary wall, as well as on towers 68, 69 and 70. Moreover, personnel of the Tamil Nadu Special Police are supposed to be patrolling the area on foot. However, no one spotted the two escaping. There are no CCTV cameras installed in or around the sterile zones, jail authorities said.

Javed and Faizan had been sent to Tihar on June 2 and June 24, respectively, for robbery, trespass and theft. “Javed was initially kept in the medical inspection room because he had fever. Once Ramzan started on June 18, he was shifted to Ward 4, where inmates who observe a fast are housed. Around 21 inmates were putting up in the ward which is called the Roza Ward in Tihar. That’s where the two became friends,” DIG (Tihar) Mukesh Prasad said.

The Ministry of Home Affairs has sought a report on how the inmates broke out of the jail, which houses more than twice the number of inmates it is meant for.

Two probes ordered

The escape of two teenagers from Tihar has started another battle of jurisdiction between the Delhi government and the Lt-Governor. On Monday, both issued separate inquiries into the incident. The probes are to be conducted by different officials.

L-G Najeeb Jung issued orders for a magisterial inquiry by deputy commissioner (Southwest), Ankur Garg.

Not recognising L-G’s order, Delhi Home Minister Satyendra Jain said another magisterial
inquiry will be done by DC (West) B S Jaglan.

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