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Wednesday 16 February 2022
Wednesday 2 February 2022
Prisoners denied condoms in Tihar jail; Parliament, Judiciary & Executive of no help
By ABVA Collective
Prisoners still do not have access to
condoms as an anti-AIDS preventive measure at Tihar jail – one of the largest
prison complex in South Asia.
In 1994 ABVA had filed a writ petition
in the Delhi High Court asking for inter
alia striking down of Section 377, IPC; supply of condoms to prisoners in
Tihar jail, New Delhi. Lawyers repeatedly pleaded with the judges to let
condoms be provided to prisoners as an interim measure. But the court refused
to pass such orders and merely asked the petitioners to wait till the time the
case would come up for final argument (which it did seven years later in 2001).
The petition was dismissed then but crucial seven years were wasted as
prisoners could not have the preventive measure.
Later heavily funded NGOs with their
slick lawyers compromised and watered down the prayers to partial repeal of S.
377, IPC. The 2018 Supreme Court judgement on partial relief has not helped the
prisoners a wee bit.
In the last three decades Parliament has
stone-walled efforts to get a debate on the crucial real life issues pertaining
to the sexual minorities – to wit the Gay Manifesto documented in ABVA’s report
“Less than Gay”. The Executive, too,
has been insensitive on the issue. In January 2022 ABVA filed an RTI
application (scanned copy reproduced below) with the prison authorities at
Tihar jail to enquire if prisoners have access to condoms within the jail
premises.
A scanned copy of the reply received is reproduced below. The answer is NO.
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