On Friday, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) released a statement that the central government will provide financial aid to the state in order to give relief to those marginalised prisoners who are incapable to avail of bail or get discharged from prison due to unable to pay the fines in poor financial condition. The step being taken by MHA will ease the poor prisoners, the majority of the sections belonging to marginalised groups with downgraded education and income level, to break out of prison. 

Under the statement of MHA, “The wide outline of the scheme has been concluded in the discourse with relevant stakeholders under which the Union government will facilitate financial assistance to States in sequence to increase relief to those poor prisoners who are unable to get bail from prisons mainly cause of non-payment of fines, on account of financial constraints.”

This move directly addresses the issue of undertrials in prison under the prime guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Minister of Home Affairs Amit Shah. From time to time, MHA had already worked on the undertrial prisoners in various segments. The particular introduction of Section 436A in the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), insertion of a new chapter XXIA ‘Plea Bargaining’ in the CrPC. On the other hand, the Legal Services Authority has provided free legal aid to poor prisoners. 

In the MHA press release, further added to make sure that the resources of the budget are extended across all the considered sections of the society. The main purpose of the budget, namely Guiding ‘Saptarishis’ is passing the last mile. Undergoing this, one of the messages is ‘Support for Poor Prisoners’. It is generally the provision of required financial assistance to poor individuals who are in the jailhouse and incapable to afford the judicial penalty or the bail amount.