HONEYPREET Vs. STATE OF HARYANA AND ORS.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petitioner Honeypreet alias Priyanka Taneja has approached this Court under Sec. 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 for setting aside impugned order dtd. 29/10/2018 passed by learned Additional Sessions Judge, Panchkula, whereby the application filed by her for providing Prison Inmate Calling System Facility (for short - 'PICS facility') has been declined in case FIR No. 345 dtd. 27/8/2017 under Ss. 120-B, 121-A, 145, 150, 151, 152 and 153 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (for short - 'IPC') registered at Police Station Sector 5, Panchkula (final report/challan has been presented under Ss. 145, 146, 150, 151, 152, 153, 121, 121-A, 120-B and 216 IPC).

(2.) Learned Senior counsel for the petitioner submits that the petitioner made a request for providing PICS facility. The Director General of Prisons, Haryana also issued instructions to provide PICS facility to prisoners after verification of phone numbers provided by them. Phone numbers given by the petitioner were also verified but still PICS facility has not been provided to the petitioner. Learned Senior counsel further submits that PICS facility has been provided to the co-accused who are facing trial along with the petitioner. Learned Senior counsel submits that phone numbers provided by the petitioner were sent for verification and the Superintendent of Police, Sirsa sent a report on 25/1/2018 stating that the PICS facility be not provided to the petitioner as a number of cases relating to violence are pending in Sirsa district. It is also mentioned that large number of people are yet to be arrested and providing PICS facility to the petitioner may endanger the peace in the area. Learned Senior counsel further submits that as per instructions dtd. 14/1/2015 issued by the Director General of Prisons, Haryana to all Superintendent Jails, Haryana, an inmate is entitled to facility of phone after verification of the numbers by the concerned police authority with certain terms and conditions. The inmates and the accused who are lacing trial, are entitled to talk to their close relatives like spouse/children/mother/father/sister/brother and lawyer etc. The character, identity and antecedents of their relatives and lawyers are necessary to be verified by the jail authorities through police or otherwise before making the service available to the prisoners. Learned Senior counsel also submits that the impugned order has been passed contrary to said instructions and without any application of mind.

(3.) Learned State counsel has opposed the submissions made by learned Senior counsel for the petitioner stating that the application has rightly been rejected. Said facility cannot be claimed as a matter of right. As per the terms and conditions of Haryana Government for providing and installation of Prison Inmates Calling System (PICS) for the jail inmates, the prisoners who are involved in offence against the States, terrorist activities, MCOCA, MCA, PSA etc. or involved in multiple heinous offence such as robbery, dacoity, murder, kidnapping for ransom, etc., habitual jail rules offenders and who are frequently involved in assaulting jail inmates in the prison are not entitled to PICS facility. Learned State counsel submits that the reasons have been mentioned in the impugned order that 20 criminal cases have been registered in connection with incident of Dera violence occurred in the State and a number of persons are yet to be arrested.