Prisoner murder bare s jail worms No. 3 o n list of ‘lunatic’ inmates

7-May-2014

KINSUK BASU

KOLKATA : Bengal has the third highest number of “lunatic prisoners” in the country but more than half its prisons don’t have a jail doctor to treat even regular inmates, leave aside those with serious mental ailments.

Prison directorate sources said out of 58 jails, only 21 have doctors. The rest has pharmacists doubling up as doctors during emergencies.

Even those that boast a physician on their payroll don’t have the necessary expertise to deal with inmates like Nizamuddin, the mentally unstable prisoner at Presidency Jail who allegedly killed fellow convict Happy Singh alias Harpreet, 37, on Monday morning, prison directorate officials admitted.

The last published report of the National Crime Records Bureau in 2012 states that Bengal has 417 inmates who are mentally ill — third after Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.

The murder of Happy has exposed successive governments’ lethargy towards addressing serious prison issues such as treatment of criminals like Nizamuddin who need regular monitoring under trained eyes.

“Barring a few, including Presidency, Alipore and Dum Dum, there are no observation wards in most of the jails where such inmates may be kept and treated,” said a senior official of the prison directorate.

“Even the efficacy of drugs administered to patients is questionable, though over Rs 10 crore is spent annually on procuring medicines for jails. Medicines find a way out of the jails.”

Preliminary inquiry reveals Nizamuddin was under psychiatric treatment since November 27, 2011, and has since been under medication. On May 2, he was admitted to the jail hospital for treatment of complications.

Next day, he was referred to the Bangur Institute of Psychiatry. On May 4, jail doctor N. Chatterjee discharged him, apparently satisfied that he was responding to medication. Insiders said the mental ward could only house 20 patients.

The very next morning, he killed Happy.

Experts asked two questions after the incident. Was Nizamuddin receiving the right treatment for his mental ailments? Did he undergo regular medical check-ups?

“There is no concept of monitoring mentally ill inmates. Since we don’t have special cells for such prisoners, they are left to stay with other inmates, some of whom are hardened criminals,” admitted an official of Presidency Jail.

Of the 306 mentally ill inmates lodged in Bengal’s jails, 103 men are convicts who would remain in prison for a considerable period of time. There are 199 undertrial prisoners suffering from various mental illnesses. Like Nizamuddin, all of them stay with regular inmates across all the jails and seldom undergo any medical follow-up.

“There should be an observation ward for such patients or criminals. A round of medication should be followed up by regular checks. They should be kept under close observation,” said senior psychiatrist Ranadip Ghosh Roy who once worked with Dum Dum Central Jail. “If such patients are teased by other inmates, they develop complications such as mood swings and psychopathic personality disorder. Hence, regular monitoring is a must.”

Experts dealing with prisoners’ mental health said inmates “bullied” by seniors either lapse into bouts of depression or develop aggression. Since both conditions can lead to suicides or extreme behaviour, it is necessary to have a separate observation or mental ward. Besides, it is mandatory under the mental health act of 1987 to provide treatment by specialist doctors to these patients.

Most jails in Bengal don’t have any observation ward or specialists like psychiatrists.

“We seek help from experts only in special cases. There are no psychiatrists on our rolls,” Haider Aziz Safwi, the minister in-charge of prisons and correctional homes, told Metro. “There is shortage of doctors as well. The sub divisional jails need doctors. We are trying to hire some on contract.”

Contempt plea

Calcutta High Court on Tuesday gave an advocate liberty to move a contempt petition against the state for its failure to provide security to inmates of correctional homes across the state.

The division bench of Chief Justice A.K. Mishra and Justice Joymalya Bagchi told advocate Tapas Bhanja: “You can file a contempt case if you wish.”

Advocate Bhanja on Tuesday moved the division bench with a copy of the day’s The Telegraph and said: “See, my lords, an inmate of Presidency jail has been killed by another inmate. This court had passed an order on June 13 last year asking the state to provide adequate security to the inmates. This order has not been carried put properly.”

“Why should not contempt proceedings be drawn against the state authorities for failing to obey the court’s directive?” he asked.

The division bench replied: “If you wish, you can file a contempt case.”

On June 13 last year, the division bench had issued guidelines for better jail facilities.

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1140507/jsp/calcutta/story_18315931.jsp

Wife’s plea to be guardian of “mentally ill” husband dismissed

24-Apr-2014

New Delhi: A woman’s plea for being declared as the guardian of her “mentally ill” husband to manage his properties has been dismissed by a Delhi court which said the man was in a capacity to take care of himself and his affairs.

Additional District Judge Sunil Rana rejected the woman’s petition, saying it was not maintainable under the Mental Health Act and the man behaved normally during his examination before the court and also answered all the questions.

The court considered the facts and circumstances of the matter and the examination of the allegedly mentally ill person by it during which he could answer all the questions properly and behaved normal throughout his examination.

“In these circumstances, by no stretch of imagination, it can be said that allegedly mentally ill person is not in a capacity to manage himself and his affairs. Hence, this court is of the opinion that present petition is not maintainable under the Mental Health Act,” it said.

The woman approached the court saying that she had married the man in 2002 and was living with him in North East Delhi till May 1, 2011 but thereafter she was forced by her in-laws to leave the matrimonial house along with her minor son.

She alleged that after her father-in-law’s death, property belonging to the family came to her husband but he was suffering from “mental disorder and was incapable of making wise decision and he needed medical treatment”.

She also alleged that her mother-in-law and younger brother-in-law wanted to usurp the property and she should be appointed as the guardian of her husband to take care of him and to manage his share in the property. The man’s mother and brother, however, submitted before the judge that he was residing with them and was not suffering from any mental illness and pleaded the court to examine him. The woman’s husband was examined by the court twice and it was observed that he could answer all the questions without any hesitation and also behaved normally.

http://zeenews.india.com/news/delhi/wife-s-plea-to-be-guardian-of-mentally-ill-husband-dismissed_926911.html

Bail for men accused of raping dalit woman

14-APR-2014

KOCHI: The high court of Kerala has granted bail to two men, who were accused of raping a woman after the police reported that the alleged victim has been suffering from schizophrenia. The woman had later accused two others of violating her, the police said.

Justice N K Balakrishnan granted bail to Kakkadampoyil, Kozhikode natives Roy T M (33) and Anil C S (19). The woman, belonging to a scheduled caste, complained to police on April 5, 2013, that the duo trespassed into her house and raped her on two-three occasions.

Advocate S Nirmal, who appeared for the accused, submitted that the woman was mentally ill and had been inconsistent in her statement.

Following a petition by Roy and his advocate’s argument, the high court sought a report from the sub-inspector of Thiruvambady police station. The officer reported that the woman has been under treatment for schizophrenia, and lacked normal intelligence.

The police also stated that the woman had retracted her initial statement and named two others as her alleged tormentors.

The petitioners’ counsel submitted that as the accused were booked under Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and rape, it was not possible to get bail from the magistrate or sessions court.

Granting bail to the duo, the court, referring to the police report, held that the complainant was not consistent regarding those who had raped her. The court also expressed doubt whether she had been really raped or if it was just some sort of hallucination.

The accused were granted bail on conditions of executing a bond of Rs 25,000 each with two solvent sureties. They were also ordered to surrender their passports.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kochi/Bail-for-men-accused-of-raping-dalit-woman/articleshow/33712903.cms

Convict seeks re-examination by doctor from outside Pune

8-Apr-2014

MUMBAI : State transport bus driver Santosh Mane who was awarded death penalty for killing nine people and injuring several others in a 2012 road rage incident, sought to be re-examined by a psychiatrist from outside Pune to prove that he is of unsound mind.

The request was made by Mane’s lawyer Jagdish Mane today before a division bench comprising Justices N H Patil and Anuja Prabhudesai, hearing the death confirmation petition as well as Mane’s appeal against his conviction.

Mane (40) was awarded death penalty by a Pune sessions court in December last year for mowing down nine people and injuring 37 others in a road rage incident.

Mane had challenged his conviction on the grounds that he is of unsound mind and is undergoing treatment for mental illness.

Mane’s advocate told the court today that while Mane was examined by doctors from Yerwada mental facility, the doctors were never examined as witnesses.

“The doctors from Pune are biased. Mane should be examined by a psychiatrist from any other civil hospital in Maharashtra,” Mane’s advocate said.

The bench sought to know if this issue had been raised before the trial court.

“You have to make an application if you want the convict to be examined. We will hear your application and see if a case is made out. This plea of unsound mind can be raised during the hearing of the appeal also,” Justice Patil said.

The matter has now been posted for further hearing on April 29.

On January 25, 2012, Mane hijacked an empty state transport bus from the Swargate depot in Pune and sped off on the wrong side of the road catching oncoming traffic and people unawares.

Mane rode for about 25 km during which he rammed into moving and stationary vehicles and pedestrians. He was later nabbed by the police.

http://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/convict-seeks-re-examination-by-doctor-from-outside-pune-114040800878_1.html

Set up hospital for mentally ill, high court tells state

20-Sept-2013

Rashmi Drolia

RAIPUR : Chhattisgarh high court has directed the state government to set up a mental health hospital at Bilaspur, asking it to retrieve the hospital building within six weeks, which was earlier given to an university.

The division bench of justice Satish K Agnihotri and justice P Sam Koshy, in their judgement, asked the government to handover the building to health department, directing that all staff, including doctors, be posted at the hospital within a fortnight. The court also directed the state government to take steps to locate and admit mentally challenged people to the hospital at Bilaspur, to provide them proper treatment, food and clothing.

The judgement came on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by Mamta Sharma, Sunita Tikariya and Bhishma Singh Tikariya, seeking a writ in the nature of a mandamus, commanding the state to cancel the allotment of the hospital building to state’s university. The building was handed over to the university at Bilaspur, for a period of three years, commencing from April 2012. The order observed that all the mentally ill people had been placed in dock and this also established the fact that the state government didn’t seem to be interested in opening the hospital, as undertaken by the state in an earlier writ petition.

Quoting a Supreme Court order in a case related to death of 25 chained inmates in Asylum in Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh high court observed that it was clearly directed to all state governments to frame policy and initiate steps for establishment of at least one mental hospital in each state. Also, mere creation of wards in other hospitals is not compliance of the order of Supreme Court, as the requirement is a full-fledged hospital catering to the needs of mentally ill people, the court observed.

Pointing out that no mental hospital has been set up till date in Chhattisgarh , high court observed that it was a requirement that at least one hospital should be there in each state. University is necessary for education, but proper treatment is the basic requirement, and so, priority must be given to the hospital, the court observed.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/raipur/Set-up-hospital-for-mentally-ill-high-court-tells-state/articleshow/22778216.cms?

LINK TO JUDGEMENT : http://www.cghighcourt.nic.in/courtJudgementandAFR/2013/Sep/WPPIL39_12.pdf

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High Court seeks report on the conditions of mentally challenged prisoners

31-Aug-2013

MADURAI : Admitting a public interest litigation seeking treatment for mentally affected prisoners, the Madras High Court (Madurai Bench) has sought a report from the Superintendent of Prisons in Tamil Nadu about the conditions of the convicts and trial prisoners suffering from mental disorders.

The Principal Bench comprising of Acting Chief Justice R K Agrawal and Justice N Paul Vasantha Kumar has given two weeks time to the prison authorities to submit the report.

In his petition, N Muthukumar, deputy general secretary of Tamil Puligal, said he was arrested and confined a cell in Block No 1 in the Madurai Central Prison for participating in an agitation on June 13. During his stay in the jail, he noticed that prisoners lodged in Block 2 displayed some abnormalities. On enquiring with long-time inmates, he learnt that Block 2, was dubbed as ‘Maiyam’ (Centre) where prisoners of unsound mind were lodged.

There are 22 prisoners suffering from various psychological disorders and 13 convicts, who are insane, presently in the said block. Every day, prison authorities provide tablets to these inmates but no proper mental health treatment was given citing lack of infrastructure.

Only prisoners who were in advanced stage of mental illness were referred for treatment outside. Sometimes neurologists and psychiatrists visited them in their cells.

Petitioner’s counsel Alagumani contended that the Tamil Nadu Prison Rules, the Prisoner Act 1900 and the Mental Health Act 1987 clearly spell out how such prisoners must be treated. But this was violated grossly by the Madurai Prison authorities. In other prisons too similar conditions prevailed.

Hence he prayed for proper treatment for the mentally ill inmates.

http://newindianexpress.com/states/tamil_nadu/High-Court-seeks-report-on-the-conditions-of-mentally-challenged-prisoners/2013/08/31/article1760639.ece

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Youth branded as Maoist released from jail

19-Aug-2013

MIDNAPORE: A deaf and mute youth, who had been picked up by joint forces on the charge of being a Maoist from Duli village in West Midnapore’s Salboni three years ago, has been released for want of evidence.

TOI had highlighted Rameswar Murmu’s plight in the days follwing his arrest, highlighting that he was mentally challenged and suffered from epilepsy.

Rameswar was acquitted by the Midnapore chief judicial magistrate (CJM) A Bhattacharya on Friday. The acquittal came after the CID submitted a report in court stating that it found “no evidence” against Rameswar.

Though Rameswar, who was lodged in the Alipore jail, secured bail on December 18, 2010, his family members didn’t come forward to get him out of jail, claiming they were “not familiar” with Kolkata.

The youth, who was 20 years old then, had been picked up after a six-hour operation by joint forces in the Ranjya forest in Salboni. He was apparently the only one caught alive after an encounter where 8 suspected Maoists were found dead. The raid was conducted under the DSP, operations, Anish Sarkar. Rameswar’s house is near the encounter site.

Though police could not extract anything from the youth, he was branded a hardcore Maoist and slapped with the most stringent of charges. The police FIR (Salboni PS case No. 58) showed Rameswar was charged with sedition (sections 121, 122, 123, 124A of the IPC), the Arms Act (sections 25 and 27) and Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (sections 16, 18 and 20).

During one of the court hearings, his father Bankim Murmu had submitted a bunch of medical records which showed that his son had epilepsy since birth and developed problems at a very young age, which led to speech loss. The court had remanded him in judicial custody and ordered that Rameswar be kept at Alipore jail.The jail authorities were asked to get his ailment treated. Though Rameswar secured bail on December 18, 2010, his family did not come forward to get him out of jail. Thus, he remained in jail all these years.

On Friday, Rameswar’s father Bankim Murmu received him as the youth came out of the court lock-up after his acquittal and discharge from the case.

He said, “My son had been arrested though he was completely innocent.” Asked why he had not taken Rameswar out of Alipore jail after he got bail, Bankim said he didn’t go as he did not know Kolkata.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/Youth-branded-as-Maoist-released-from-jail/articleshow/21906425.cms?

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Youth branded as Maoist released from jail

19-Aug-2013

MIDNAPORE: A deaf and mute youth, who had been picked up by joint forces on the charge of being a Maoist from Duli village in West Midnapore’s Salboni three years ago, has been released for want of evidence.

TOI had highlighted Rameswar Murmu’s plight in the days follwing his arrest, highlighting that he was mentally challenged and suffered from epilepsy.

Rameswar was acquitted by the Midnapore chief judicial magistrate (CJM) A Bhattacharya on Friday. The acquittal came after the CID submitted a report in court stating that it found “no evidence” against Rameswar.

Though Rameswar, who was lodged in the Alipore jail, secured bail on December 18, 2010, his family members didn’t come forward to get him out of jail, claiming they were “not familiar” with Kolkata.

The youth, who was 20 years old then, had been picked up after a six-hour operation by joint forces in the Ranjya forest in Salboni. He was apparently the only one caught alive after an encounter where 8 suspected Maoists were found dead. The raid was conducted under the DSP, operations, Anish Sarkar. Rameswar’s house is near the encounter site.

Though police could not extract anything from the youth, he was branded a hardcore Maoist and slapped with the most stringent of charges. The police FIR (Salboni PS case No. 58) showed Rameswar was charged with sedition (sections 121, 122, 123, 124A of the IPC), the Arms Act (sections 25 and 27) and Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (sections 16, 18 and 20).

During one of the court hearings, his father Bankim Murmu had submitted a bunch of medical records which showed that his son had epilepsy since birth and developed problems at a very young age, which led to speech loss. The court had remanded him in judicial custody and ordered that Rameswar be kept at Alipore jail.The jail authorities were asked to get his ailment treated. Though Rameswar secured bail on December 18, 2010, his family did not come forward to get him out of jail. Thus, he remained in jail all these years.

On Friday, Rameswar’s father Bankim Murmu received him as the youth came out of the court lock-up after his acquittal and discharge from the case.

He said, “My son had been arrested though he was completely innocent.” Asked why he had not taken Rameswar out of Alipore jail after he got bail, Bankim said he didn’t go as he did not know Kolkata.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/Youth-branded-as-Maoist-released-from-jail/articleshow/21906425.cms?

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UK court OKs vasectomy for man who can’t consent

16-Aug-2013

LONDON: A British court has ruled for the first time that a man who lacked the capacity to give informed consent should have a vasectomy because it is in his “best interests.”

The 36-year-old man, known only as DE, has an IQ of 40, lives with his parents and has a long-term girlfriend who also has severe learning disabilities. In 2009, DE’s girlfriend became pregnant and had a child. According to Friday’s court ruling, DE insisted he did not want any more children.

His doctors and parents applied to the court for the vasectomy since DE doesn’t have the mental capacity to understand the procedure and its implications. The judge ruled that it is “overwhelmingly in DE’s best interests” to have a vasectomy.

Experts said DE was able to consent to a sexual relationship and that a vasectomy would give him a measure of independence. Attempts to teach DE how to use condoms failed.

Britain’s Court of Protection regularly makes decisions for people lacking mental capacity and has previously ordered women sterilized, but this is the first time a vasectomy has been authorized on the grounds that it is in the man’s best interests. It will still be up to the man’s doctors to decide if the procedure should go ahead.

“The court simply concluded…that a vasectomy was in the patient’s best interests because fatherhood was not,” Charles Foster, a medical ethics expert at Oxford University, said in an email. Experts said another child would cause DE major “psychological harm” and that his relationship had broken down when his child was born.

“This is not a decision the court made lightly,” said Penney Lewis, a legal ethics expert at King’s College London, adding that the judge had an obligation to choose the least intrusive method. “This is a man who already has a child and has repeatedly expressed his opinion he does not want any more,” she said.

Lewis said the case shows the burden of evidence needed for a court to order a sterilization procedure.

“There were extensive efforts made by everybody involved to improve his quality of life by other means,” she said. “It would be hard to imagine a (similar) case where the benefits would be more obvious than this one.”

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-08-16/uk/41417044_1_vasectomy-uk-court-mental-capacity

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Give mentally-disabled a suitable job: SC

19-Aug-2013

Bhadra Sinha

NEW DELHI : State administration cannot dispense with ore reduce rank of a government servant if he or she acquires disability including mental illness or retardation during service, the Supreme Court has ruled.

Quoting the provisions of The Persons with disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995 a bench of Justice GS Singhvi and Justice SJ Mukopadhyaya held that if a person is found unsuitable for the post he or she holds on account of acquired disability during service, he or she should be moved to another post suitable to his or her state.

The bench further held that under section 47 of the Act if it wasn’t possible to adjust such a person against any post, the government authority ought to keep him or her on a supernumerary post until a suitable one is available until the employee attains the age of superannuation.

With these observations the court recently directed the Union Ministry of Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) to pay consequential benefits to a 1977 batch IAS officer, Anil Kumar Mahajan, who was compulsorily retired from service on October 15 2007 after a disciplinary inquiry declared him insane. The inquiry report came 11 years after it was instituted in 1993 when he worked with the Bihar government.

At the time of inquiry the officer was placed under suspension twice. His representation for a voluntary retirement was turned down by the DoPT on the ground he hadn’t completed the minimum service of 20 years. Later, however, the ministry compulsorily retired him.

Mahajan later challenged the findings of the disciplinary proceedings before the Central Administrative Tribunal, which turned down his plea.

However, on his appeal the SC set aside the order of compulsory retirement and said: “The appellant was appointed in the service of respondents as an IAS officer and joined in the year 1977. He served for 30 years till the order of his compulsory retirement was issued on October 15, 2007. It is not the case of the respondents (DoPT) that the appellant was insane and in spite of that he was appointed as an IAS Officer in 1977.”

Observing “some problem was going on between the appellant and authorities of the state (Bihar),” the court said: “In view of the aforesaid finding, we are of the view that it was not open to the authorities to dispense with the service of appellant or to compulsory retire him from service.”

The court further said: “The High Court also failed to notice the relevant fact and without going into the merit allowed the counsel to withdraw the writ petition merely on the basis of the finding of Inquiry Officer.”

Since in normal course Mahajan would have retired from service on July 31, 2012, the SC directed DoPT to pay him the full salary, except the subsistence allowance already received, for the period from the date of initiation of departmental proceeding till his date of superannuation.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/NewDelhi/Give-mentally-disabled-a-suitable-job-SC/Article1-1109600.aspx

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