Amritsar City’s ‘high-security’ jail in name only?

PK Jaiswar

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, June 17

The Amritsar Central Jail authorities have seized as many as 48 mobile phones from the “high-security” jail under ‘operation clean’ in the last 17 days.

The newly constructed jail is surrounded by densely populated areas already notorious for crimes and drug abuse. Unscrupulous elements sling prohibited materials, including mobile phones, safely wrapped in plastic bags, which are later recovered by patrolling parties. -  A jail official

The jail staff has taken appropriate measures for nailing perpetrators. Seizures indicate that we have adopted zero tolerance against such elements.- Hemant Sharma, Additional Superintendent, Central jail

Jail authorities have launched ‘operation clean’, under which regular search operations are being carried out to seize objectionable materials that have been sneaked into the high-security jail by unscrupulous elements.

The jail not only houses notorious gangsters and petty criminals, but infamous drug peddlers, terrorists and foreign nationals as well.

On Thursday, three mobile phones were confiscated from a notorious gangster and another prisoner. Davinder Singh, Assistant Superintendent, Central Jail, said a search operation was carried out in room number 7 of barrack number 6.

The staff confiscated a smartphone from a prisoner Pargat Singh, alias Mandeep Singh, alias Deep, while another keypad phone was recovered from notorious gangster Nitin Nahar of Lawrence Bishnoi gang. The third mobile phone was found hidden in the exhaust fan of the bathroom.

The police have registered a case under Sections 42 and 52-A of the Prisons Act against them and further investigations were on, the police authorities said.

A jail official wishing not to be quoted said the newly constructed jail is surrounded by densely populated areas that are already notorious for crimes and drug abuse. The unscrupulous elements sling prohibited materials including mobile phones safely wrapped in plastic bags, which are later recovered by patrolling parties.

Hemant Sharma, Additional Superintendent of the jail, said the Amritsar Central Jail staff has taken appropriate measures for nailing perpetrators. Seizures indicate that we have adopted zero tolerance against such elements.