Civil Writ Petition No. 7938 of 2009 1 In the High Court of Punjab and Haryana, at Chandigarh. Civil Writ Petition No. 7938 of 2009 Date of Decision: 3.7.2009 Court on its own motion …Petitioner Versus State of Haryana …Respondent CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE T.S.THAKUR, CHIEF JUSTICE. HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE KANWALJIT SINGH AHLUWALIA. 1. Whether Reporters of local papers may be allowed to see the judgment? 2. Whether to be referred to the reporters or not? 3. Whether the judgment should be reported in the Digest? Present: Mr. Randhir Singh, Additional Advocate General, Haryana. T.S. Thakur, C.J. (Oral) These proceedings in public interest were initiated on the basis of a note received from Hon'ble Mr. Justice Mahesh Grover, a Judge of this Court, in which he had highlighted the hardships arising out of conviction of the members of a family and their inability to meet or interact with each other on account of their being lodged in different Jails or different parts of the same Jail. The note suggested that a possible remedy could be explored by this Court taking up the matter on the judicial side to reduce hardship and ensure a humane treatment to the convicts. Civil Writ Petition No. 7938 of 2009 2 In response to a notice issued by this Court, the Director General Prisons, Haryana, has filed an affidavit pointing out that in certain cases the inmates of the Jail were escorted by the police to meet their relatives confined in another Jail or in different parts of the same Jail. These orders are, according to the affidavit, irregular as there is no provision in the Punjab Jail Manual or the Prison Act under which prisoners may be allowed to move out of the Jail for purposes of meeting undertrials or convicts in the same Jail or different Jails except upon grant of furlough or parole to him or her by the competent Court. The affidavit suggests that it would be appropriate if the convicts use the parole facility available under the Rules to visit their relatives confined in other Jails. We have today heard Mr. Randhir Singh, Additional Advocate General, Haryana, and are of the opinion that the issue raised in the note sent by Justice Grover can also be taken as a possible reformatory measure that needs to be introduced in the management of the Jails. Our attention has been drawn by Mr. Randhir Singh to an order passed by this Court in C.W.P. No. 15041 of 2007 disposed of on 30.5.2009 whereby we had constituted a Committee each for the States of Punjab and Haryana headed by two former Judges of this Court with senior retired officers from the Indian Police Services and from the Indian Administrative Services. The Committees have been assigned the job of examining the possible reforms that can be introduced to make available to the inmates facilities to which they are entitled during their incarceration in the Jail and the steps that can be taken to protect their human rights. The Committees have also been requested to suggest Civil Writ Petition No. 7938 of 2009 3 amendments to the Punjab Jail Manual. Specific reports regarding the major aspects indicated in the order have been called for from the Committees to help this Court issue appropriate directions that would require the authorities to provide health, hygiene, food, clothing and medical facilities to the inmates especially the mentally sick. The sweep of the exercise which the Committees are required to undertake in terms of the said order is in our opinion wide enough to examine whether any amendments to the Punjab Jail Manual are called for to take care of the situation where one convict desires to meet another convict who happens to be a member of his family serving sentence or detained as an undertrial in the same or in different Jails. We, therefore, dispose of these proceedings with the observation that the issue raised in the note sent by Justice Grover shall also stand referred to the Committees constituted by this Court in terms of order dated 30.5.2009 passed in C.W.P. No. 15041 of 2007. Copy of the note received from Justice Grover and a copy each of this order shall be forwarded to the two Committees for necessary action. (T.S.Thakur) Chief Justice (Kanwaljit Singh Ahluwalia) Judge July 3, 2009 “DK”