Mother and children suffering in detention camp
Special correspondent
SILCHAR, April 28: It is a painful and pathetic tale of a mother and her two children languishing in detention camp of Silchar along with 555 prisoners. This has been confirmed from a reliable source. Mother Archa Biswas and the two children Gobinda Biswas and Gopal Biswas have been detained in the camp since September 13, 2014. The period of sentence is already over. Their detention is in flagrant violation of all canons of justice and against humanism. In their hour of extreme distress, there is no information of the father of the children.
It is true that the mother was convicted and sentenced for a period of two months only in connection with G.R. case no. 1321/14 u/s 14 F Act R/W section 6 (a) IPP Rule by the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Karimganj. It is really unthinkable why Gobinda Biswas aged about 6 years and Gopal Biswas aged 4 years should continue to suffer who have no fault of their own. According to the standing rules and regulations in respect of the foreign tiols, those convicted of being aliens are required to be deported immediately after their period of sentence is over.
On humanitarian and compassiote grounds, the children who are compelled to rot in the camp at their age have to be sent to their tive home so that they are able to grow and live like any other children of their age freely and without fear. Keeping these children within the four corners of the jail would deprive them from their participation in creative and constructive activities, proper education, physical and mental growth. Their detention along with mother for long 17 months even after expiry of their sentence tells upon the blind alleys of denying legal and tural justice to them.
The plight of the mother and children can also be understood from the fact that except being provided with meals twice a day in the noon and in the afternoon, nothing else like scks, bread or even tea are served to them. It means they have to remain in hunger for a period of seven hours. Still pathetic, these innocent children have nothing to read or learn as one teacher deputed for education to the inmates in general retired from service on August 31, 2015. After that and till now no teacher is appointed or deputed for the Central Jail.
For these children, on grounds of sympathy and considering their future, arrangement has to be made to eble them to read and learn the basics of education. As it is proved under the law of citizenship that mother and children come from Bangladesh, the Deputy Commissioner and the Superintendent of Police, Cachar, should have moved the Commissioner of Home, Inspector General of Prison and Ministry of Exterl Affairs to take up the matter with the Embassy of Bangladesh, New Delhi. But surprisingly, no such move has been made till date as learnt by The Sentinel.
Fellow inmates irrespective of their caste and creed taking plight of the mother and children have been extending all possible help to keep them in good spirit and heath. Children in particular are being taken care of not only with love and affection but also with food items. They also try to make them learn all that is needed for their primary and basic education. In fact, it is the affectiote and sympathetic attitude of both male and female prisoners which is making them oblivious of their pains and agonies of living within the four walls of a central jail, turned into detention camp.
