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Rights Of Prisoners Against Custodial Torture In India
The relationship between human rights and prisoners has always been erratic. There are always been conflicting opinions on the position of, whether the prisoners are entitled to human rights or not. Some people having their opinion that, when a person becomes deviant and commits a crime, he should be deprived of all his rights. But others having their opinion that some rights remain the same and vested in a person even after the commission of a crime by that person. Apart from this, there are certain basic rights which the prisoners are entitled to safeguard from any inhuman practices. Such as, much detestable practice is "Torture", which is mainly used against the prisoners to get confessions from them about that particular event of a crime. Unfortunately, torture has increased alarmingly day by day throughout the world. The word Torture is defined as, "Intensive suffering like physical or mental or psychological, which is used to force someone to confess something against his or her own will. "
The use of torture on prisoners and undertrials has really become an ordinary phenomenon in police custody in India nowadays. The police which is the "Civil Force of the State" Use to torture to obtain information or confessions from the prisoners. Now the point is, the use of torture has already been strictly prohibited under the "International Instruments and National Laws" of most of the countries. Many conventions have been signed on the international level to stop or prohibit torture and any other forms of inhuman degrading treatment towards human beings.
Human Rights and Prisoners
"Life means not only physical existence. It means the use of every limb or faculty through which life is enjoyed. The right to life includes the right to a healthier environment." - Justice P.N. Bhagwati
The provisions for the treatment of prisoners has been recognized on international levels and are discussed under various International Instruments such as " Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) ", " International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR)", "United Nations Basic Principles for treatment of Prisoners ", " United Nations Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman Treatment (UNCAT)". Even after giving so much importance to the rights of prisoners by international communities and most of the states being signatories to these conventions, the rights of prisoners are violated in some form or another.
Even the Constitution of India lacks many specific provisions as to the rights which every prisoner is entitled to. Also, the Honourable Indian Supreme Court has been time and again, while deciding different cases, mainly focused on the rights which the prisoners are entitled to all the time. SC also included various other rights for the prisoners while they were in custody under Article 21 which is right to life and liberty by expanding its scope. Rights also granted to prisoners under the purview of Article 21 that is, Right Against Custodial Torture and Death in Police Lockups, Right to Cruel and Unusual Punishment, Right to free legal aid, Right to a fair trial, Right to Speedy Trial.
In this instant case, IN SMT. NILABATI BEHERA VS. STATE OF ORISSA AND ORS, the fact was, a letter sent by Smt. Nilabati Behera to the Supreme Court stating that her twenty-two years old son, Suman Behera had died in police custody after being inflicted with several injuries. The Honourable Court took SUO MOTO action against it and converted it into a writ petition under Article 32 of the Indian Constitution. The petitioner claimed compensation for her son's fundamental right to life guaranteed under Article 21. The Orissa police arrested Suman Behera for investigation of theft and he was detained at the police outpost. The very next day, his dead body was found near the railway track. His body was simply indicated towards an unnatural death.
Therefore we can conclude by saying that human rights are available to each individual, even when he is a civilian or a criminal. The prison bars cannot keep out the basic rights of an individual. The Indian government till now has not ratified the United Nations Convention against Torture and even after the introduction of the Prevention of Torture Bill,2017 in the Indian Parliament, no such legislation was passed. Thus, it could be concluded that to stop the use of Torture in India, the Indian government needs to amend the rules and Police Act of 1861, to stop the police to be major violator of individuals right against custodial torture. Only this is the way, the use of torture can be prevented in India.
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