Mateen Hafeez / TNN
Jan 16, 2019, 07.48 AM IST
MUMBAI: Court appearances of prisoners from a section of state jails using the cost- and time-effective videoconferencing facility are up 77% since 2016. In 2018, around 45,000 inmates were produced in court via videoconferencing compared with 26,000 in 2016.
The number of prison inmates produced before courts via videoconferencing rose to 3,941 in November 2018 from 2,229 in the corresponding period of 2016. Till date, as many as 3.3 lakh prisoners lodged in the state’s south region jails have been produced in court via this facility since it was first introduced in 2005.
Those produced in court via videoconferencing are inmates whose trials have not begun or who are involved in sensitive cases and whose trips out of prison involve security issues. When Indrani Mukherjea, an accused in the Sheena Bora murder, was discharged from J J Hospital last April, she was produced before the CBI court via videoconferencing.
The facility was first introduced in state prisons in 2005. Initially, it faced several technical issues which were sorted out over time. “A few years ago, almost all prisons got the facility, which has made it easier to produce prisoners before courts,” said a prison officer, indicating that this has helped expedite trials and prevent prolonged detention.
At least two policemen are required to escort an accused to court. “Many a times we do not get the required escort personnel and sometimes inmates are not sent to court for hearing. Even we want all of them to attend court but feel helpless,” said the officer.
In the past, inmates have also given escort parties the slip, but this is virtually ruled out in videoconferencing. “An unwell inmate can also attend court from the VC room. It helps in speedy trial,” the source said.
The Times of India, January 16, 2019
