Two convicts die in Tihar Jail, head warden suspended

Two convicts including a lifer on Thursday died under mysterious circumstances at the high-security Tihar jail in Delhi on Thursday morning, just around five days after an undertrial was stabbed to death.

The deceased have been identified as Ritesh Mittal alias Shalu (32) and Amit alias Panda (26). Jail officials suspect that the two died after consuming some drug smuggled into the prison.

Both of them were lodged in ward number two at jail number 8-9 of the prison complex. Ritesh was undergoing life imprisonment in a murder case and had spent 11 years in jail. 

A Tihar official was suspended and a magisterial probe ordered into the mysterious death of two convicts. 

Delhi Home Minister Satyendra Jain summoned the jail authorities and directed them to submit a detailed report about the death of the inmates which came just days after an undertrial was stabbed to death in the jail.

The minister told the Tihar authorities that the government will not tolerate any negligence in security inside the jail. He said growing incidents of violence inside the prison premises indicated serious problems and these should be addressed without any delay.

Jail officials informed Jain that the head warder responsible for safety of jail ward, in which the two convicts were found dead, has been placed under suspension and the inquiry into the incident has been given to a Metropolitan Magistrate.

He expressed concern over the security of inmates lodged inside Tihar and asked the jail authorities to take steps to prevent recurrence of such incident. A committee, to be headed by G Sudhakar who had served as DIG Prisons, will review the security arrangements inside Tihar Jail and will submit its report to Jain within a week.

The minister also directed officials to expedite the completion of <g data-gr-id="67">Mandoli</g> Jail in East Delhi to ensure quick <g data-gr-id="68">decongestion</g> of Tihar Jail which has been repeatedly cited as one of the main reasons behind the problems. 

One of the deceased, Amit,  was convicted in an attempt to murder case. “According to their fellow inmates, both of them were inhaling some drug in the night which they had sneaked in from somewhere. They even advised the duo not to indulge in the act as it may be harmful. But, the two didn’t budge. In the morning, their condition deteriorated.

“Authorities called in jail doctors who tried to revive them but realising that they need institutional care they were sent to DDU hospital where they died at around 9:30 am,” said Tihar DIG and spokesperson Mukesh Prasad.

Police were informed about the incident and they have started investigation in the case. The bodies have been sent for <g data-gr-id="69">postmortem</g> to ascertain the exact cause of death. 

Police will also investigate as to how the drugs were smuggled into the prison complex. Security at the high profile Tihar jail has been a cause of concern off late as police have recently busted several extortion rackets being run from the premises in which inmates used mobile phones.

A number of inmates have also lost their lives in the recent past in fights on the jail premises.