RTI 1 Criminal Justice System
Review of cases of Undertrials as an internal reporting mechanism PRISON Review of cases of Undertrials as an internal reporting mechanism Periodic Review Committees (Rajasthan & other states) Prison Visiting System (Rajasthan & other states) Special groups – mentally-ill, elderly (Rajasthan) – foreign nationals (Rajasthan) – Bangladeshi Nationals (West Bengal) Court Productions (Rajasthan) Section 436A (West Bengal) GOVERNMENT Appointment of NOVs (State level) Warder Vacancies & Recruitment (State level) Mental Hospitals in India (Ministry of Health, GOI) Mission Undertrial (Ministry of Law & Justice, GOI)
LEGAL SERVICES AUTHORITY Legal Aid Services (Rajasthan) Empanelled lawyers (Rajasthan) Legal Aid Camps (Rajasthan) Status of Appeals & Legal aid lawyers (NALSA) Duty Counsel Schemes in Police Stations, Courts & Prisons (SLSAs of all States & UTs) Deployment of Police Personnel (District level & State level) POLICE PROSECUTION Implementation of the Probation of Offenders Act, 1958
RTI 2 Challenges
1 2 3 4 5 Initial hurdles with the know-how of the tool Vexing resistance from CJS actors – language problem 3 Building necessary alliances with respective institutions to speed up response to RTI enquiries 4 Coping with procedural delays 5 Device effective means to manage information and bulky documentation
RTI 3 Success
1 2 3 Breaking Privilege, Building Openness and Monitoring of Prisons Building Evidence on Overstays, Production & Legal Representation Effective Implementation of Rights of Undertrials 4 5 Identifying and Tackling Individual Cases of Unnecessary and Illegal Detention Merits of Accidental Knowledge
Prison Reforms Programme Thank you! Prison Reforms Programme CHRI