BY NOLAN PINTO
A pastor who regularly helps in the
prison here in Mysore and I were having a talk on many things a few days ago.
From what happens in there to how life is tough for them, we touched upon all
these and more. The warden himself confessed to the pastor that many in there
are not at all accused or involved in the crime but due to reasons unknown to
us, were put behind bars.
The pastor then began to speak about
how those incarcerated have lost their families. They could not even get out
when somebody was sick, dying or even passed away. They had to grieve in
silence. What caught my imagination was that Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt is out
on parole. His wife is unwell and hence the authorities gave him a month if I
am right.
He told me about this one man, who
was allegedly falsely put in jail. He was an eye witness to a murder. This
person has been in jail for the past 8 years. During these years, his wife, son
and parents passed away. The pastor tells me that this man has nobody and
nowhere to go. The jail is now home sweet home. Even if he is let out now, he
said, what can he do? Shunned by society and by his own relatives, who will
give him a job? This man, when asked by the pastor for his jail number did not
know what that was either. The others convicts upon hearing him being asked,
forced him to go get all the documents he had to give it to the pastor. Such is
that man’s state of affairs.
Then there was another case where
this man was jailed after his wife passed away. Again, we do not know how true
it is but according to him, his wife's family put a dowry case on him and that
is how he was arrested and incarcerated. He told this pastor that if his wife
was alive, she would tell the world he is innocent. She, according to him, was
suffering from heart problems and he, the husband tried to take care of her by
getting her treated in different hospitals. He was crying bitterly while
narrating his life.
I listened patiently and quietly to
what he was saying, all the time feeling real sad and at the same time once
again angry with our system. The system that favours the rich and powerful and
ignores the poor.
Maybe they were wrong and deserved
punishment, maybe they have been reformed or maybe they just have been framed.
All I am saying is that the justice system must be equal to all. Why is Sanjay
Dutt out on parole while these people are stuck inside? I am sure his wife has
a lot of aides and family to look after her. They are not without money either.
So why did he get parole? Our system sucks.
I have personally seen how the poor
are treated and how the rich are worshipped. It is sickening to see all that
happening in what we call a thriving democracy. WE are not a democracy.
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