Gang war or escape attempt?

Tihar prisoners slashed each other with surgical blades inside a jail van and some attempted to slip away after guards tried to end the fight

Gang war or escape attempt?

Tihar prisoners slashed each other with surgical blades inside a jail van and some attempted to slip away after guards tried to end the fight

More than 20 prisoners who were being taken to court in a jail van attacked each other with surgical blades and then made an attempt to escape on Thursday.The incident occurred at around 9 am when the van from Tihar jail carrying the prisoners reached Shankar Road. Two groups of inmates started fighting and attacked each other with surgical blades.

The police guards accompanying them immediately stopped the van and entered the prisoners' chamber to stop them from fighting. Sources said that as the van stopped, some of the prisoners forced their way out and started running towards the ridge area. They were however caught by the guards after a brief chase. Local police was immediately informed about the incident.

"We arrived at the spot and found that two prisoners had suffered minor injuries. The van then took the prisoners back to Tihar," said a police officer on condition of anonymity.

The jail officials did not respond to the calls and messages of MiD DAY. Sources said that a company of Rapid Action Force was also called in to control the situation. "The van guards had no idea how the prisoners had managed to get hold of surgical blades. This might have been a plan of prisoners to escape from the van as there are usually just six cops to guard the jail van that carries around 20 to 30 prisoners at a time," the officer added.

12,000
Approximate no. of inmates at Tihar Jail

6,250
Sanctioned capacity of Tihar

Campus placement!
The first placement drive of prison inmates in the country was flagged off at Tihar Jail last month, with 14 inmates receiving offer letters from private companies. 10 companies, including Relaxo Footware, Vedanta Enterprises, Agarwal Packers, JRA & Associates and Good Housekeeping, participated. Of the 14 offers, six came from Agarwal Packers. Forty-five inmates between the age of 25 to 30 had been selected by the prison administration for the interviews, he added.

Hard to swallow
Incidents of Tihar jail prisoners using surgical blades to settle scores with other inmates have become more of a routine than an exception. Though jail officials are usually aware of the ways in which banned items can be smuggled inside the jail, what surprises them is that at times prisoners even risk their lives to smuggle blades into the prison. "We often catch prisoners who try to sneak banned items including surgical blades inside the prison from time to time. Form hiding the blades in the false soles of their shoes to keeping them stacked inside their body cavities, the prisoners have attempted all," said a security official at Tihar Jail.u00a0 Recently a prisoner who was trying to smuggle a blade inside the prison, swallowed it to avoid getting caught. "An under trial, Deepak Kumar, who was being taken back to jail after a court hearing swallowed the blade to avoid getting caught. During security check at the main gate, when Deepak was asked to pass through the metal detector, he refused. This made the guards suspicious and he was asked to open his mouth which he also refused. As the guards insisted on it, he swallowed the blade which he was hiding in his mouth," said a jail official. Deepak was then rushed to Deen Dayal Upadhaya hospital at Hari Nagar, where the doctors removed the blade that was wrapped in tape from his stomach after an operation. "The incident took place in the second week of February," sources said. During interrogation, Deepak said that initially he had inserted the blade inside his nasal cavity but since it was causing him pain, he hid it in his mouth. "Deepak, who is considered as a high risk prisoner, confessed that he was taking the blade inside to settle scores with a fellow prisoner," said the jail official.