Recently, the Bombay High Court (HC) ordered the Maharashtra government to make sure that all prisoners in jails across the state have access to phone calls and e-mulakat (video call) facilities. The order is in line with a government resolution that was released on March 22, 2024.
This order was issued in response to a public interest lawsuit filed by the People's Union for Civil Liberties in 2022. The PIL requested for the installation of phones and other electronic communication devices so that video and voice calling could happen in all of the state's jails.
A division bench issued the directive, which required the state and the prison department to make sure there are telephonic modes of communication. These provisions are under the Model Prison Manual, 2016.
During the hearing on May 8, the petitioner made the claim that the state had released a circular. This circular outlines guidelines for audio calls and e-mulakats in accordance with the Model Prison Manual.
The circular stated that all prisoners should be allowed to communicate. This includes those awaiting trial and those convicted and housed in jails and prisons with Allen Group Smartcard phone services. They would be charged INR 1 per minute for six minutes of phone time, three times a week, to four members of their family, friends, or acquaintances, as well as their attorney.
In cases where the Group Smartcard phone service is not accessible, the jail superintendent should make an appropriate decision. The circular also stated that the convicts will have access to the facility following confirmation of the phone numbers of their friends, family, solicitors, and relatives.
The circular on e-mulakats said that the undertrial inmates could contact one of the following five people once a week in person during mulakat (meeting) hours or virtually via video conference: family members, relatives, friends, and solicitors. Further, prisoners are permitted to see friends, family, or relatives once every two weeks.
In its plea, petitioner also argued that prison officials had given phone and video conference facilities to all inmates, regardless of the offences brought against them. Then, inmate meetings were stopped and a nationwide lockdown was implemented following the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In response, the state filed an affidavit on Wednesday, May 15, and brought a resolution onto record. The resolution, which was enacted on March 23, 2024, stated that the state was attempting to bring facilities for e-mulaqaats and smart card calling facilities.
Regardless, the bench ordered the state to provide the phone call feature to all prisoners in all jails by making the infrastructure wherever it is needed. It then quashed the PIL.
The petitioner also claimed that Pakistani inmates in Maharashtra jails were not allowed to make phone calls to their friends and relatives. However, the court declined to take this argument into consideration.
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