Hardcore criminals will be tried on jail premises: Randhawa

PATIALA: The Punjab prisons department has mooted a proposal to conduct the trials of hardcore criminals, especially gangsters, on the jail premises by setting up special courts, said state jails and cooperation minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa here on Wednesday.

Randhawa, who assumed charge on Tuesday, paid a surprise visit to the Patiala’s Central Jail as a part of his tour across the state’s prisons. The minister said reforming the jails in Punjab was the top priority of his agenda.

He said the modalities were being worked out to make arrangements to set up special courts inside the jails, thus ensuring that undertrials did not get to project themselves as heroes.

“This will ensure that youth of Punjab do not go astray by such show-offs,” he said. He added that a special court room was being prepared within the jail premises for this purpose, and the video conferencing facility was already in place for the hearings of matters involving gangsters.

Randhawa said to stop misuse of mobile phones on jail premises, the department was in contact with the Centre for an upgrade of jammers from 3G to 4G.

“To tackle drug abuse by inmates and strengthen security arrangements inside jails, CM Captain Amarinder Singh has sanctioned 420 posts of warders,” Randhawa said.