Lucknow: Van Carrying 9 Women Prisoners, 14 Officers Catches Fire

A police van transporting nine female inmates and 14 police officers from the Lucknow District Jail to the courthouse was engulfed in flames near the Raj Bhavan on Tuesday, according to authorities. Despite the alarming nature of the situation, all passengers were successfully rescued. However, the police van itself suffered significant damage, being completely charred as a result of the fire.

Immediate Response and Rescue Efforts

Officer Ram Kumar Rawat of Hazratganj Fire Station told the media that two fire tenders were sent to the spot where the incident happened.  Within a commendable timeframe of 15 minutes, the blaze was successfully extinguished, averting further escalation of the situation.

Rawat said that the driver had noticed fire emanating from the van's battery. Alarmed by it, he immediately stopped the vehicle and asked the prisoners and the officers to evacuate the van. This quick thinking undoubtedly played a key role in preventing potential casualties and minimizing the extent of damage caused by the fire.

The situation of women prisoners across the country

Looking at the broader lines of how women prisoners are treated in the country, in the recent verdict on February 8th 2024, an amicus curiae told the Calcutta High Court that women prisoners were getting pregnant in prisons in West Bengal. The court was further told that 196 babies have been born in different prisons in the state. Addressing the concern of the women in the prison, the amicus suggested that male employees of the correctional facility should not be allowed to enter spaces enclosing women prisoners. "I pray for a total prohibition of male employees of correctional homes, in the enclosures where women prisoners are kept," 

On February 9, the Supreme Court took suo motu cognizance of the alarming increase in the number of pregnancies happening within the prisons across the country. 

However, later, the Calcutta High Court, reconsidered the case of women getting pregnant in the correctional homes and prisons of West Bengal. The court cautioned against making unnecessary implications against women prisoners or making them undergo "secondary victimisation" through a court process. 

Considering the privacy and dignity of the women prisoners, the court refused the suggestion of amicus to make every woman undergo a pregnancy test before entering the prison. The bench said, "The extent of intrusion into her privacy will be commensurate with the necessities of her detention. If she wishes, there must be a voluntary agreement to a pregnancy test. We don’t propose unnecessary intrusions into privacy just because someone is a suspect and has been brought as an undertrial.”

What does the data say about the situation of women prisoners in India?

Moreover, there is a death rate in women-only prisons in India. According to the NCRB report of 2022 that examined the prisons of India, out of a total of 1330 prisons, only 34 are reserved for women. Even though India is notorious for overcrowding prisons, the women-only prisons are mostly empty. According to the NCRB data of 2019, women's jails could house 6,511 female prisoners. But only 3,652 were housed. The problem is that women prisoners are pressed into one room with limited space when compared to the number of prisoners.