They accused used self-loading rifle, Springfield gun, pistol and other weapons and fired over 200 shots to create panic at the high-security Nabha jail before freeing the accused. The UP police have recovered a selfloading rifle and a gun from Pinda.

Chaos, corruption rule Punjab jails

CHANDIGARH: The unprecedented audacious act at the high-security Nabha jail on Sunday has once again brought under glare the chaos and corruption ruling Punjab prisons.

Jails have virtually lost their meaning and instead of serving as “reform centres” they are being used by gangsters to regroup and realign, recruit new members and plan crimes together. With easy access to mobile phones, they also execute crimes, run extortion rackets and plan their own escapes.

The police investigating the Nabha jailbreak incident is of the view that the six inmates who dashed to freedom this morning were in constant touch with those who had come to facilitate their escape. Since January 2015, 37 gangsters have escaped from custody while being brought for hearing and another eight have absconded while out on bail, in most cases with the active help of fellow gangsters.

The mismanagement of Punjab prisons has been a serious cause of worry for police authorities. Aggravating the anarchylike situation in state jails is a rampant political interference in flagrant violation of the jail manual rules.

In fact, Punjab director general of police Suresh Arora had flagged this with the chief election commissioner during the latter’s visit to poll-bound state recently. “Unless the jails are well-controlled, there can be a serious fallout on the state’s law and order” says a top police official.

CORRUPTION NUB OF THE PROBLEM

The nub of the problem is rampant corruption with jail staff allowing almost every comfort possible to the inmates for a price. Inmates, have access to mobile phones, sim cards, cash and drugs. In May, police conducted surprise checks of various jails in Punjab and recovered 65 mobile phones, a dozen sim cards, opium and other drugs besides cash. As many as 15 phones were seized from Nabha jail.

Inmates manage to smuggle these things either through the help of relatives who come to meet them in jail or during their visit to the court for hearings. Inmates also “use” mobile phones of the jail staff for a price. Similarly drugs, syringes to inject drugs, cigarettes, bidis etc are also supplied through the jail staff.

SHORTAGE OF STAFF AND INFRASTRUCTURE

The jail department suffers from a perpetual shortage of staff to control the overburdened jails. In Punjab there are 26 jails which house over 23,000 inmates. In 1994, the prisons had about 2,000 warders for about 10,000 inmates. Currently, the jails have 24,000 convicts/undertrials with only 1,000 warders. It was only recently that the department began hiring almost 560 jail wardens after the cabinet cleared additional posts for the department.

In order to enhance security inside and outside the jails, the department has been demanding a battalion of the Punjab Armed Police (PAP) for every jail but the police have not been able to spare its employees for duty in jails. Most of the jails in the state also lack basic surveillance and monitoring infrastructure and it was only recently that the police started installing jammers and CCTV cameras in jails.

THE MISSED OPPORTUNITY

oday’s incident also comes in wake of the state government having shot down a move to bring in the Punjab Control of Organised Crime Act (PCOCA), 2016, to empower the police and courts to effectively counter gangsters. The draft act was proposed by the police but was put off by the cabinet on the grounds that some of its provisions could be misused by the police.

Cong, AAP corner govt, say shows complicity at high level

CHANDIGARH/SANGRUR: The Nabha jailbreak has given the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) enough ammunition to corner the ruling Akali-BJP government ahead of the high-stake assembly in Punjab.

Alleging involvement of the Parkash Singh Badal government in the jailbreak, Punjab Congress chief Captain Amarinder Singh said the incident had exposed a “complete breakdown” of law and order in the state, while triggering fears of revival of terrorism ahead of the assembly elections.

“The manner in which gangsters walked into the high-security jail and freed a Khalistani terrorist along with other convicts shows complicity of the highest level,” Amarinder said in a statement.

Reiterating his fears of terror attacks and other violent incidents in the state ahead of the polls, Amarinder said the rescue of Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, accused in 10 terror-related cases, suggested an “active effort” from across the border to revive terrorism in Punjab.

Meanwhile, AAP national spokesman and Punjab in-charge Sanjay Singh has demanded deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, who is also the state home minister, and jails minister Sohan Singh Thandal’s resignation.

“By claiming that the Nabha jailbreak was the handiwork of Pakistan, deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal has once again exposed himself to his irresponsible behaviour,” the AAP leader said, adding that if it is true, Union home minister Rajnath Singh should also quit for failing to protect the international border.

Party’s Punjab convener Gurpreet Singh Waraich said this was not the first time when Sukhbir has blamed Pakistan for all ills in Punjab

‘AMARINDER PLAYING INTO HANDS OF ANTI-NATIONALS’

Punjab deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal on Sunday accused Capt Amarinder Singh of playing into the hands of antinational forces by making “wild and malicious allegations” against the SAD-BJP government, instead of rallying with it to corner and confront such forces.

“They know a special team has been constituted, both at the police and civil level, to get to the bottom of this conspiracy. The senior most jail official has been suspended while Nabha jail officials have been dismissed,” he said.

 

Jailbreak puts spotlight on law and order in poll-bound Punjab

CHANDIGARH : At a time when the parties of Punjab are whipping up poll frenzy on Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal issue, debt waivers for farmers and drug abuse among the youth, the daring jailbreak at Nabha in Patiala district has once again put the spotlight on the law and order in poll-bound Punjab.

The border state faces the danger of extremism from enemies across the border and within. Decades after the long spell of militancy came to an end, attack on Pathankot air base in January 2016 and Dinanagar police station in July 2015 gave way to fear of revival of terrorism.

The spate of incidents of sacrilege of Guru Granth Sahib in the recent months helped Sikh radicals get more politically mobile ahead of the high-octane elections. They held a congregration — Sarbat Khalsa — last year at Amritsar. The separatist agenda is getting a push from organisations and advocacy groups abroad such as Sikhs for Justice

Punjab Congress chief Captain Amarinder Singh, whose Canada tour was stalled following a complaint by SFJ, and his US trip marred by protests by radicals, has even hinted at extremists having the sympathy of some Canadian ministers.

Though the Parkash Singh Badal government has been blaming foreign hand in all this, it cannot escape the responsibility for losing grip on law and order. The daylight murder of Namdhari sect matriarch Chand Kaur and attack on RSS leader Jagdish Gagneja, who later succumbed to his injuries, have exposed how outlaws are getting emboldened. The fact that the government had to recommend both these cases to the CBI shows either the home department headed by SAD president and deputy CM Sukhbir Badal is clueless or incompetent to handle these elements.

NABHA JAILBREAK: AUDACIOUS ATTACK MONTHS BEFORE SCHEDULED ASSEMBLY POLL

Red alert sounded, Centre seeks report

Union Home Minister calls up Badal | Deputy CM briefs NSA head | Rohit Chaudhary new ADGP (Jails)

Jupinderjit Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, November 27

The sensational Nabha jailbreak wherein six armed assailants dressed in police uniform freed two terrorists and four gangsters has alarmed security forces across northern states.Alarmed over the security situation in poll-bound Punjab, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh called up Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and sought a detailed report on the incident.Rajnath asked him to “take urgent steps” to tighten security in all jails in Punjab, official sources in the MHA said, adding that during the 15-minute conversation, the CM briefed the Home Minister about the incident and steps taken to nab the culprits.“I have told the Home Secretary to get a report from the Punjab government immediately. If the Punjab government needs any assistance, we will provide it,” Rajnath said.A red alert has been sounded in Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan, besides Chandigarh and New Delhi. The police have erected barricades all over the three states, besides monitoring rail and bus transport.Union Home Secretary Rajiv Mehrishi also spoke to the Punjab DGP and asked him to ensure adequate security in all state jails.As an immediate fallout of the incident, ADGP Jails MK Tiwari and Nabha jail superintendent and deputy superintendent were suspended.ADGP Railways Rohit Chaudhary has been posted as ADGP Jails and S Bhupati, IPS, as the superintendent of Nabha Jail. Rohit was investigating the Dinanagar terror incident earlier, but was unceremoniously removed from it. The government has ordered the constitution of a probe panel headed by Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Jagpal Singh Sandhu to look into the security lapses.The state has announced a reward of Rs25 lakh to any person providing information leading to the arrest of the six escapees.Deputy CM and Home Minister Sukhbir Badal briefed National Security Adviser Ajit Doval about the incident and the steps taken to nab the escapees.Amid reports that hardliners were regrouping and trying to take advantage of the government’s denial of the fact that the incident has taken place in the poll-bound Punjab where a number of high-profile killings, including that of RSS leader Jagdish Gagneja and Namdhari matriarch Chand Kaur, have remained unsolved, Rajnath Singh has offered more security forces to the state. Already, 10 paramilitary battalions are deployed in Bathinda and adjoining areas in the wake of the proposed “Sarbat Khalsa”.Badal held a meeting of civil and police officers this morning. A Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been formed to investigate the jailbreak.Prabodh Kumar, Additional Director General of Police, Internal Vigilance Cell, would head the SIT that comprises Paramraj Singh, IGP, Patiala Zone; Ishwar Singh, IGP; Nilabh Kishore, IGP, Counter Intelligence; Amar Singh Chahal, DIG, Patiala Range; and Gurmeet Chouhan, SSP, Patiala.A manhunt has also been launched to nab the escapees.Car with uniform found in Kaithal village Kurukshetra: Police uniform suspected to be used by the Nabha jail escapees was found in an abandoned car bearing Punjab registration number (PB 29 S 6154) at Solu Majra village in Kaithal. Kaithal DSP Tarun Kumar said several phone numbers scribbled on paper were found. Karnal police range IGP Subhash Yadav said the vehicle was suspected to have been used by the escapees but a conclusive comment would be made after the investigation. The IGP said police deployment was scaled up at all entry points bordering Punjab and movements of suspected persons were being examined. TNS

Nine jail officials booked

• The police have registered a case against 30 persons, including nine jail officials, under Sections 307, 392, 223, 224, 120-B, 148 and 149 of the IPC and various sections of the Arms Act. An FIR has also been filed against the six escapees.

Jail reforms take backseat

Aman Sood

Tribune News Service

Patiala, November 27

Poor infrastructure, condemned vehicles, political interference, open threat by gangsters and judicial scrutiny following false complaints by jailed gangsters are some of the reasons that prisons in Punjab are far from reforms.Sources said police officials are not interested in getting a posting inside jails, while the Jail Department officials are performing their duties under poor conditions.In May, the state Jail Department had failed to convince senior police officials to join as Superintendent, Jails. Even those who were without plum postings in the Police Department had expressed their reservations about joining as jail superintendents. Interestingly, despite hard duty, jail officials get less salary compared to police officials of the same rank.The then Additional DGP (Jails) MK Tiwari had made personal “SOS calls” to over 20 senior Indian Police Service and Punjab Police Service officers to come to the Jail Department on deputation, but many officers “politely refused” the offer.“The government suspended our ADGP, but the fact is that there is nothing that the government has done in terms of ensuring better facilities for jail officials. Tiwari is now made a scapegoat, while the action should be against seniors who are holding back reforms,” said a jail official, preferring anonymity.“Jails in Punjab are breeding grounds for crime and once in jail, inmates do not fear the law. Further, the recent policy by the Punjab Government, allowing a 21-day parole after every three months has also demotivated both the police and jail staff,” said an official, who had earlier refused to serve the Jail Department. “Today’s daring escape is the collective failure of many departments. We cannot even think that no one dared to check the men in private cars, who were armed,” he said.Recently, directly recruited Deputy Superintendent of Jails (DSJ) declined to join the department, citing “poor working conditions and pitiable infrastructure”. Already at the junior level, the Jail Department is short of 1,300 officials out of 2,450 posts. “In case you suspend or transfer a jail warden or a below rank official, they would use political clout and get back in service,” said a jail official.Overcrowding is another problem that worsens conditions such as sanitation and the failure of basic services such as health care, spread of diseases, stress among inmates and staff. 

Gounder may be killed in encounter, fears family

Archit Watts

Tribune News Service

Muktsar, November 27

The family of gangster Harjinder Singh Bhullar alias Vicky Gounder (27), who escaped with five other prisoners from Nabha jail today, demanded legal action against him for his action. It, though, feared the police might kill him in an encounter.Gounder is a native of Sarawan Bodla village in Lambi Assembly segment.His mother Jaswinder Kaur said, “I learnt of my son’s escape from jail through news. He can’t escape on his own. He acted on someone’s suggestion. The police must put him behind the bars and not harass us. They (cops) have taken away two of my nephews.”In the past four years, she and her husband Mehal Singh never met their son in jail. “I feel sad because of his actions. He is my lone son,” Jaswinder said.Gounder was once into sports. “After taking admission in a Jalandhar college, some youths spoiled him and he took to the world of crime. We advised him to mend his ways,” she said taking a deep breath.Jagdish Singh, younger uncle of the gangster, said Gounder’s action of escaping from jail had shocked them. “He should not have run away. We fear that the police may kill him in an encounter.”He questioned the security arrangements in the jail.“I had met him in jail about three months ago. He had told me he would become a law-abiding citizen. But I was unaware of what was going on in his mind,” Jagdish said.Gounder was once a discus thrower and won medals at the national level, he recalled. He regretted sending Gounder to Jalandhar.His father Mehal Singh was not present in the house. Jagdish said his brother had disowned Gounder in 2011.Senior Superintendent of Police Gurpreet Singh Gill said, “The police have rounded up two cousins of Gounder. They will be released once the investigation is over. Besides, we are conducting raids at some of his possible hideouts and put up nakas.”

NABHA JAILBREAK

Chawla, Congress demand Deputy CM’s resignation

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, November 27

Politics has taken the centre stage following the sensational escape of two terrorists and four gangsters from the high security Central Jail in Nabha.Veteran BJP leader Laxmi Kanta Chawla even demanded resignation of Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, who also holds portfolio of the Home Department, on moral grounds.In a statement here today, Chawla said it was failure of the Punjab government and the Home Department, which led to escape of terrorists and dreaded gangsters from the Nabha jail. She said the Deputy CM was busy in inaugurating buildings in name of development and had no concern for the state’s dismal law and order situation.“If any terrorist attack happens in Punjab following the escape of Harminder Singh Mintoo, a Khalistan Liberation Force operative, it will be the responsibility of junior Badal,” she said while adding that he should resign on moral grounds.Meanwhile, the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee vice- president and Amritsar West MLA, Rajkumar Verka, held the Akali government responsible for the sensational escape. In statement here today, Verka said, “The Congress Party demands resignation of Sukhbir Badal for failure of the Punjab government and the Home Department.” He said the Election Commissioner should immediately announce imposition of model code of conduct after this incident.He alleged that Akali government wanted to deteriorate the peaceful atmosphere of Punjab before the upcoming Assembly polls. “Today’s incident was a well planned move by Akalis,” he added. He said around 200 gun shots were fired while there was no fitting response from the police, which had raised many eyebrows, he added. He said suspension of an ADGP was unfortunate as he was made a scapegoat for Deputy CM’s own failure. “Sukhbir should resign from the post of Deputy CM,” he added.Two terrorists and four notorious gangsters were freed by armed persons in police uniforms from the high security Nabha jail today. Hundreds of rounds were fired by them while managing the escape.

Security beefed up at Kapurthala Modern Jail

Only 330 policemen to guard 2,800 prisoners in the jail

Rachna Khaira

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, November 27

Security was beefed up inside the Kapurthala jail today following the fleeing of dreaded terrorists and gangsters from the Nabha jail.Meanwhile, there are only 330 staff members of the Prison Department to guard around 2,800 prisoners lodged inside Kapurthala Modern jail.According to jail superintendent Ravinder Singh Thiara, more companies had been moved to the outer boundary of the 78-acre jail area and also the CCTV footage was being monitored round the clock in the security room. “The jail staff has been asked to be vigilant 24×7 and to conduct random checking inside prison cells to keep a close tab on the activities of prisoners lodged inside various cells,” said Thiara.Despite strenuous efforts by the jail authorities, they were having a troublesome time due to the shortage of staff inside the jail.According to sources, though there has been a huge increase in the number of prisoners inside the jail since it was running from the old jail site in Jalandhar, having a capacity to lodge around 300 prisoners, there has been no increase in the number of staff members since then.Also, the weapons and ammunition available with the jail authorities were inadequate. Though the state government has claimed that the recruitment process was under way, any government decision in this regard before the crucial election time seemed to be a distant reality.

‘Jails staff under pressure, criminals enjoying multiple Wi-Fi connections’

Rachna Khaira

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, November 27

In the wake of the today’s attack at high-security Nabha jail from where six dreaded criminals, including two terrorists, escaped, senior police officials who have served in various jails of Punjab revealed some sensational information about the alleged nexus among prisoners, politicians and staff of the Department of Prisons deployed inside jails. “Prisons in Punjab are the epicentre of a hardcore nexus among criminals, politicians and also officials of the Home Department serving inside jails,” alleged a senior police official who had served at an Amritsar prison a few years ago.According to him, despite the installation of jammers, a majority of the criminals, including dreaded gangsters, were presently holding more than 10 Wi-Fi connections inside jails.He even alleged that the staff deployed on duty inside jails lower the frequency of jammers to enable criminals to use mobile phones and to continue their criminal activities even while lodged inside jail.Also, officials revealed that jail management inside Punjab prisons was incoherent, as criminals had not been segregated in any of the jails till date. “According to the custody management, the criminals having a history should be kept separate from those having a non-criminal background. However, due to immense political pressure, the jail authorities are forced to keep even the dreaded criminals according to the choice of their political bosses,” alleged another official.The official also said that there was no transparency in the jail authorities and the Police Department on the reshuffle of criminals. “The jail staff is supposed to discuss with the Police Department about the reshuffle of a criminal from one jail to another. However, they do not inform us. In case of Vicky Gonder, he was shifted to Nabha jail without any intimation to us. Despite shifting him to Nabha jail to segregate him from his other gang members, he was lodged along with other dreaded criminals like Harminder Singh Minto. This itself proves a huge lapse by the Nabha jail authorities,” said another official.Also, officials spoke at length about the dilapidated infrastructure inside Punjab prisons.If they were to be believed, the overcrowded jails were facing an acute shortage of jail staff, no police official from the department was ready to come on deputation in these jails.Amongst other issues, the CCTV cameras were not working and, most importantly, the jail staff was under intense pressure of politicians and senior officials.