The Delhi High Court recently sought a status report on the current medical condition of all convicts and under-trial prisoners over the age of 75 from the Medical Superintendent of Tihar Jail.
A division bench of Justice Siddharth Mridul and Justice Mini Pushkarna said that the status report must also include full details of any treatments given to the prisoners.
The bench directed that the status report has to be submitted on or before May 29, 2023.
“The concerned Medical Superintendent is directed to furnish a fresh status report regarding the current medical condition of all the convicts and under-trial prisoners, who are above the age of 75 years (currently lodged in jail), including complete details of the treatments, if any, being provided to them, on or before the next date of hearing,” the order reads.
The court was hearing a suo motu case filed in 2005 in response to a news story in the Delhi Age titled “92-year-old is Tihar undertrial.”
Maya Devi, the elderly lady, was charged under Indian Penal Code Sections 419, 420, 467, 471, and 120. The court granted her bail in 2005, citing her old age and a report from the Medical Officer of Tihar Jail stating that she was suffering from a variety of diseases.
Since then, the court has been monitoring the medical status of the elderly prisoners in Tihar jail.
