Patiala jail inmate alleges extortion, torture

PATIALA: A video shot by the inmates of the Patiala Central Jail alleging extortion and 'torture' by the jail staff was shared widely on the social media platforms.
In the video, one Deepak Sharma, an inmate serving three years of jail term, can be seen alleging that at least 15 jail staff accompanied by some of the senior officials thrashed him inside the prison premises demanding money.
The prisoner also showed injury marks on his body alleging that jail personnel threatened him that they would put him in a smaller cell if he failed to pay the money.
The video, shot by another inmate, went viral and was even shared with the jail minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa.
Jail superintendent Sp Khanna said a probe had been ordered and medical examination of Deepak had been conducted at the government hospital.
In the video, Deepak Sharma alleged that jail staff members stormed into his barrack and started beating him.
“As I tried to run and save myself, they again got hold of me and again thrashed me on the floor,” he claims in the video and urges the higher authorities of the jail department for help.
Recently, another video showing a jail staffer demanding money from a relative of another inmate had also gone viral prompting the department to order a probe. Later, head warder Resham Singh was placed under suspension.
Last year, the jail minister Sukhjinder Randhawa had ordered the dismissal of four officials, including jail superintendent, two assistant jail superintendents and head warder, for running an extortion racket inside the Patiala Central Jail.
The matter came to light after prime accused in the Muzzafarpur shelter home scandal Brajesh Thakur’s family filed a complaint with Punjab Chief Minister’s office alleging that he had been tortured and raped by the gangsters inside the jail, who then managed to extort Rs 15 lakh from them.