SC held that assigning sanitation works to the marginalised castes and cooking to higher-caste prisoners was direct caste discrimination and a violation of Article 15.
Published Oct 03, 2024 | 1:36 PM ⚊ Updated Oct 03, 2024 | 1:36 PM
Supreme Court. (Creative Commons)
The Supreme Court on Thursday, 3 October, ordered all states and Union Territories to end caste-based discrimination in the division of labour in prisons.
A bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala, and Manoj Misra, while pronouncing the judgment in a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by journalist Sukanya Shanta based on her article published in The Wire, asked the authorities to remove caste column in prison registers.
The apex court struck down the provisions of several states’ prison manuals that maintained jobs in prisons should be assigned based on caste.
It held that assigning sanitation works to the marginalised castes and cooking to higher-caste prisoners was direct caste discrimination and a violation of Article 15.
The court objected to the provisions of the Uttar Pradesh Prison Manual, which states that a person undergoing simple imprisonment need not be given menial work unless people from his caste have been doing such jobs.
“We hold that no group are born as scavenger class or to do or not do menial jobs or as classes who can cook and who cannot cook…these are aspects of untouchability which cannot be permitted,” the court observed in the judgment, reported LiveLaw.
“Segregating prisoners on the basis of caste will reinforce caste discrimination… segregation will not facilitate rehabilitation… Not providing dignity to prisoners is a relic of the colonial system. Even prisoners are entitled to the right to dignity. They are to be treated humanely and without cruelty. Prison system must be considerate to the physical and mental health of the prisoners, ” CJI DY Chandrachud said.
The court directed all states and Union Territories to revise their prison manuals to end caste-based allotment of work and the Union government to make necessary changes in its Model Prison Rules.
It further directed that the reference to habitual offenders in the prison manuals should be in accordance with the legislative definitions, without reference to their caste or tribe.
Senior Advocate S Muralidhar and Advocate Disha Wadekar who appeared for Shantha argued that there were three ways of discrimination in prisons.
They said the inmates were discriminated against by the division of manual labour, through segregation of barracks on caste lines and through extant provisions in state prison manuals against prisoners belonging to.
These manuals refer to people of de-notified tribes as criminal or wandering and nomadic tribes and “habitual offenders”.
Following the arguments, the court directed that the caste columns in prison registers must be delted.
Before pronouncing the judgment, CJI Chandrachud said that the petition was “beautifully researched” and congratulated the lawyers for arguing the matter effectively.
The petition highlighted discriminatory practices in the prisons of certain states and Union Territories of India.
Shanta mentioned that the old Uttar Pradesh Prison Manual, 1941 provided for the maintenance of caste prejudices of prisoners and designation of cleaning, conservancy, and sweeping work on caste basis. However, in 2022, amendments were made aligning it with the Model Manual and removing provisions for allotting work based on caste.
Despite this change, the 2022 Manual continued to uphold a rule related to the preservation of caste prejudice and segregation of habitual offenders.
The petition noted identical discriminatory laws in the State Prison Manuals of 13 major states including Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, Punjab, Bihar, Maharashtra, etc.
(Edited by Muhammed Fazil)
