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According to the GO, the Samiti should meet EVERY MONTH to review cases of undertrials who…
11
22
33
Have completed half or more than prescribed punishment (now S.436A, Cr.P.C.)
Are accused of serious offences but have been undertrial for a ‘long period’ of time
Have committed such petty offence that there is no need to keep them in judicial custody
Purpose of the Samiti
KEEPING LIBERTY AS A PARAMOUNT VALUE…Established in by the Rajasthan Government
KEEPING LIBERTY AS A PARAMOUNT VALUE…Established in by the Rajasthan Government1979
Members of the SamitiChief Judicial Magistrate
Representative of District Magistrate
Representative of Superintendent of Police
District Probation Officer
Office In-Charge, District Prison
ProformasProforma AProforma A
Death, imprisonment for life or imprisonment for a term of not less than 10 years, completed 90 days under custody , investigations not concluded [S.167(2)(a)(i)Cr.P.C.]
Proforma CProforma C
Completed more than the maximum term of sentence [S.428 Cr.P.C.]
Proforma BProforma B
Term of imprisonment less than 10 years, completed 60 days, investigation not concluded [S.167(2)(ii)Cr.P.C.]
Proforma DProforma D
Non-criminal lunatics for observation for more than 30 days[S. 16 & 23 of Indian Lunacy Act, 1912]
How are Samiti meetings conducted
Letter is sent from Prison to CJM’s office to decide meeting dateLetter is sent from Prison to CJM’s office to decide meeting date
CJM decides the date and remaining 4 Members are notified about the meeting particulars
CJM decides the date and remaining 4 Members are notified about the meeting particulars
Lists are prepared by prison staff according to 4 Proformas (see below) for cases to be reviewed by the Samiti
Lists are prepared by prison staff according to 4 Proformas (see below) for cases to be reviewed by the Samiti
Minutes of the Meeting sent to all the Members & Courts for action
Minutes of the Meeting sent to all the Members & Courts for action
YES NOIs the next meeting date
decided by the CJM?
Review Meeting is held in the premises of the prison Review Meeting is held in the premises of the prison
Collection of Data
Study Sample: 29 Prisons | 7 Central Jails & 22 District Jails
CJ Udaipur, DJ Gangapur city, DJ Jalore, DJ Jhunjhunu
TIME PERIOD: JUNE 2009 – JUNE 2010
Number of Meetings
Number of Meetings Held
Sri Ganganagar
Not a single district conducted all 13 meetings!
Number of Meetings
Names of Districts
1 Bharatpur, Bhilwara, Bundi, Dausa, Dungarpur, Jhalawar, Pali
2 Kota, Bikaner, Ajmer, Hanumangarh, Sirohi
3 Alwar, Dholpur, Baran, Barmer, Nagaur
4 Jaipur, Banswara, Jaisalmer, Sikar
5 Chittorgarh
6 Churu
7 Jodhpur, Pratapgarh
8
9 Karauli
10 Tonk, Rajsamand
11
12
13 Sri Ganganagar
Number of Meetings
No Specific Reason
No Specific Reason
CJM could not decide on meeting date
CJM could not decide on meeting date
Meeting not held due to busy schedule
Meeting not held due to busy schedule
Administrative ReasonsAdministrative Reasons
CJM / Superintendent on leave
CJM / Superintendent on leave
Reasons for Meetings not held
76% did not specify any reason for meetings not held
Irregularity of Meetings – Date of Meeting not decided in advance
Proformas not followed by the prison authorities inpreparing list of cases
Unrealistic Case Review - On an average, 340 (Central Jail) to 177 (District Jails) cases reviewed in single meeting
No set format or practice to record minutes and quality varied from prison to prison
No Action-taken Report provided by the respective courts to inform the Samiti about the case-wise progress made
Information about Samiti meetings not proactively disclosed – No provision to inform undertrial before or after the review
Issues That Need Attention
Root Cause of Irregularities
v/s
Formed by the Government but headed by a judicial officer
No Authority to monitor its working
Before the Samiti Meeting Dates must be pre-set at least six months in advance
– ensure proper preparation and maximum attendance
Jail authorities must prepare jail-wise lists with strict adherence to existing proformas and following Additional Proformas:
a. Serious Offenders punishable with death or life imprisonment whose trial is continuing over two years
b. Petty Offenders punishable with imprisonment up to 2 yearsc. Undertrials completed half or more than the maximum term of
prescribed punishment [S.436A, Cr. P.C., 1973]d. Juveniles/whose age is contestede. Mentally ill [S.328–339, Cr. P.C., 1973]f. Persons detained under Chapter VII (Security For Keeping The
Peace And Good Behaviour) & S.151, Cr. P.C., 1973 – remove the possibility of arbitrariness in inclusion of names
During the Samiti Meeting Effectively review cases qualitatively, touching all
important aspects of each case – ensure that injustice is not perpetuated
On request, opportunity for Undertrial to appear in person
– facilitate disclosure of personal obstacles in obtaining bail
Inter-agency issues, like shortage of police escorts, benefit to petty offenders under supervision of Probation Officers, etc., must be discussed – ensure better coordination among various agencies
After the Samiti Meeting The outcome of the review must be shared with the undertrial
concerned – right to know the status/obstacles to one’s trial
Minutes of the Meeting:a. must be detailed and complete & all Samitis must follow a style
guideb. must indicate detail of each case reviewedc. must specify action taken on each case reviewed in the previous
meeting and indicate whether persons have been releasedd. must be sent in a timely fashion to all concerned
magistrates/judges of the districte. must also be sent to the High Court Judge overseeing that
district along with any comments from the CJM as necessary– ensure uniformity in the functioning of Samitis across the State
Other Recommendations Statutory Recognition to Avadhik Samiksha Samiti
Oversight and supervision by High Court Judge overseeing that district
A standard computerised data management system to maintain records of the prisoners in all prisons
List of prisoners under review during a month, proceedings of the Samiti and its records should be proactively put in the public domain under S.4 of the RTI Act