RIGHTFULLY OURS

Introduction

Indian prisons are grappling with a major substance abuse crisis. According to the Prison Statistics India Report 2022, 58,130 inmates struggled with drug addiction. For these individuals, imprisonment isn’t just about confinement. It’s a battle against withdrawal, mental distress, and limited access to rehabilitation.

Despite stringent security measures, drugs continue to infiltrate prisons. A study of Punjab’s prisons revealed drug trafficking in 15 out of 24 jails, either by hiding contraband in body cavities or acquiring it during court visits. In Tihar Jail, drugs are frequently thrown over compound walls and sold inside. Shockingly, 40% of smuggled drugs are supplied through prison officials. For instance, a police guard was caught sneaking drugs into Mumbai’s Arthur Road Jail.

The situation is even graver for female inmates, who face 12-15% heightened risks of exploitation due to active or passive drug dependency. They not only smuggle drugs to male inmates by concealing substances in their undergarments or body cavities, as seen in Punjab, but also face heightened risks of intracarceral sexual abuse, as evidenced in Bengaluru. Yet, research on their struggles remains scarce, and policy reforms lag behind. In this article, the author advocates for a systemic reform strategy to combat substance abuse by female incarcerates.

Women Inmates as Victims of Drug Abuse: Reporting, Taxonomy, and Regulation

The Reporting: Author’s Dilemma on Meager Gender-Specific Research

Reports on drug abuse in Indian prisons are plentiful, yet they consistently overlook a critical aspect: gender-specific data. The Vinay Kumar Commission Report revealed nearly 80% of inmates in Bengaluru’s Central Prison were addicted to ganja, but failed to classify how many drug-dependent inmates were women. Private studies, such as Deepika Thakur’s research in Model Central Jail, Shimla, which analyzed substance use patterns through socio-demographic factors like age and education, similarly neglected gender dynamics.

In contrast, the United States (US) has extensively documented the disproportionately high rates of serious mental illness (SMI) and substance use disorders (SUD) in incarcerated women due to inadequate access to de-addiction treatment (DAT) and rehabilitation programs. Kathryn Nowotny’s research revealed a “revolving-door” effect, where such women cycle between incarceration and homelessness. There’s an urgent need for similar gender-focused studies in Indian prisons to facilitate gender-sensitive reforms.

The Taxonomy: A Classification of Female Incarcerated Drug-Abuse Victims

In the absence of secondary data, the author takes the liberty to categorize female victims of drug abuse in prisons into three groups: Passive Victims, who do not use drugs but suffer violence from addicted inmates; Active Consensual Users, former drug users who continue substance abuse in prison, whether they became addicted consensually or forcibly before incarceration; and Active Forced Users, those coerced into drug use and addiction while incarcerated. 

The needs differ between these categories. The first category needs greater protection through segregation from addicts, while the last two groups are particularly vulnerable to withdrawal symptoms and self-harm. To expatiate on the latter, a training facility in Vellore had to be established for prison officials as Tamil Nadu prisons faced widespread ganja withdrawal cases.

The Regulation: Existing Judicial and Policy Reforms in Prisons

Addicted prisoners, whether undertrial or convicted, require DAT to combat substance dependence and reintegrate into society after release. Shveta Mashiwal v. State of Uttarakhand directed early identification of addiction symptoms at arrest and prison admission to enable timely medical intervention. This recommendation is supplemented by how, in a preliminary inquiry at Madurai, a whopping one-sixth of the total 600 remand prisoners were found to be suffering from drug addiction. Similarly, Om Prakash Singh v. Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi directed identifying addicted inmates on arrival, treating them in de-addiction centers (DACs), and transitioning them to rehabilitation wards. This can protect Passive Victims from Active Consensual Users, preventing their transition into Active Forced Users while ensuring Active Consensual Users receive the requisite DAT. To achieve this, DACs have been established within prison premises under the National Action Plan for Drug Demand Reduction (NAPDDR). 

Sealing The Cracks: Recommended Reforms For A Safer System

Regardless of judicial and policy efforts, SMI and SUD treatment in Indian jails has largely failed, and prisons continue to prioritize punishment over care. The author calls for five urgent reforms to revamp the ill-equipped criminal system.

Compassionate Treatment for Female Offenders

Addicted female inmates are especially vulnerable to sexual violence. Since an all-female warden system remains utopian, male security becomes a risky compromise. Given these challenges, reducing female incarceration becomes the ideal solution. However, a lack of empathy persists despite evidence that many female offenders were victims before becoming perpetrators. According to the author, a strong case exists for community service instead of imprisonment for women convicted of non-violent crimes, allowing them to avoid the cycle of incarceration and addiction altogether.

Implementing the 245^th Rajya Sabha Committee Report Recommendations

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs, Rajya Sabha, in its 245th Report, recommended strengthening entry-point security to curb drug infiltration in prisons using body scanners, visitor screening, and regular random searches of inmates, staff, and common areas. This can ensure that women are not used as drug carriers, as is happening in Punjab prisons. Widespread implementation, however, remains elusive. Even the Supreme Court’s ‘Report on Prisons in India’ notes a lack of execution and calls for its adoption.

Emulating American ‘Drug Courts’ in India

In the US, Drug Courts provide court-monitored treatment for drug offenders, with successful completion sometimes leading to charge dismissal. Female-centric initiatives are especially undertaken. For instance, the Brooklyn Treatment Court and Hale County Drug Court have fruitfully undertaken female sobriety programs.

Recognizing the need for such a system in India, Justice Paramjit Singh, in Gurjit Singh v. State of Punjab, emphasized that courts handling Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985 cases should work alongside DACs for drug-addicted offenders to receive mandatory treatment, sanction treatment defaulters and incentivize treatment graduates. Establishing such a model in India could ensure a more rehabilitative, rather than punitive, approach to addiction-related offences.

Amending Section 64A of the NDPS Act, 1985

The involvement of women in drug trafficking is on the rise, with Uttarakhand singularly witnessing a 79% increase in female arrests under the NDPS Act from 2020 to 2022. Many of these female peddlers are forced into addiction to remain under the control of drug lords. In such cases, applying Section 64A of the NDPS Act, 1985 becomes crucial for their rehabilitation. Section 64A grants immunity to offenders caught with a small quantity of drugs voluntarily seeking DAT. However, there are two areas for improvement. 

Firstly, in its current form, the provision requires proof of addiction, making first-time and occasional users ineligible and subjecting them to criminal prosecution instead. Moreover, an implied admission of guilt discourages many from seeking treatment. Despite the 2014 amendments, Section 64A was left unchanged. To align with its original intent of decriminalizing addiction and encouraging treatment without the fear of permanent criminal records, it is high time the provision was amended to remove these restrictive conditions.

Secondly, in practice, this provision should be utilized more actively. The study ‘From Addict to Convict: The Working of the NDPS Act in Punjab’ found that between 2013 and 2015, no offender in Punjab was directed to DACs by the courts. Justice Mudgal rightly commented, after the study’s launch, that long spells in prison turn addicts into hardened criminals themselves. Active use of this provision can help break the cycle of addiction and criminality.

Revitalizing De-addiction Efforts

Despite the NAPDDR, prisons lack specialized DAT resources, unlike external rehabilitation centers staffed with trained professionals. For instance, Tamil Nadu has therapists outsourced. Haryana has these positions unfilled. Bihar relies on government hospitals instead. Delhi had no records of addicted prisoners at all. Even in historically sensitive states like Punjab, where firefighting drugs is a priority, the Punjab Opioid Dependence Survey (2018) found that while 80% of inmates attempted to quit drugs, merely 10% received DAT.

Though there’s no data officially available, the situation is likely worse for women, as several studies on female prisons have highlighted systemic issues. The Report of Justice Amitava Roy Committee on Prison Reforms (2022) underlined that the correctional justice system is ‘evidently gender exclusionary’ and the lack of basic facilities affects women prisoners more severely than men. Hence, implementation lapses in policy initiatives must be addressed urgently, in general and especially in female prisons.

Conclusion

Female inmates in India are trapped in a prison of addiction, where de-addiction efforts remain fragmented, security loopholes enable drug smuggling, and rehabilitation takes a backseat to punishment. Without immediate reform, prisons will continue to breed addiction rather than cure it. Lastly, the author concludes by drawing inspiration from Terry O’Reilly’s words:

“Restorative justice is rooted in the belief that every individual has the capacity for transformation and growth. It seeks to provide opportunities for offenders to take responsibility for their actions, make amends, and reintegrate back into society as productive members.”