NT Reporter
Panaji
The High Court of Bombay at Goa on Wednesday directed the committee, constituted by the court on June 18, to complete its report suggesting amendments to the Goa Prison Rules, 2021, for the establishment of open correctional institutions (OCIs).
The direction was
issued during the hearing of a suo motu matter concerning compliance with a Supreme Court (SC) judgment on OCIs.
The High Court directed the committee to place its report and proposed amendments on record and also submit the report to the monitoring committee within the same period. The matter has been posted for July 15. The court had earlier appointed the committee to prepare draft rules and recommend amendments to enable the Law Department to amend the Goa Prison Rules.
The High Court had observed that the Goa Prison Rules, 2021, do not contain any mechanism for establishing or operating OCIs.
Pursuant to the court’s order dated May 6, the Home Department/Department of Prisons constituted a committee, which prepared a report after deliberating on the concept of OCIs. The report was
placed before the steering committee and has also been placed on record in the proceedings.
The High Court had also observed that the Sanganer Open Correctional Institution in Rajasthan, which has been functioning for decades, offers valuable insights for setting up a similar institution in Goa. To enable firsthand study, the court directed the Goa Home Department to fund and arrange a study tour for the seven-member expert committee to visit the Sanganer facility.
