This article has been written by Ms. Nancy Maggo, a 5th year BBALLB Student from Law College Dehradun faculty of Uttaranchal University.
INTRODUCTION
Solitary confinement is a type of confinement in which a prisoner is isolated from prisoners sight and communication. A prisoner or inmate is isolated from all human contact as part of this type of punishment. The Supreme Court defined solitary confinement as a type of confinement in which inmates are completely separated from one another and from the outside world in Kishore Singh Ravinder Dev v. State of Rajasthan. It is an extreme measure that should only be used in extreme circumstances involving unspeakable brutality and atrocity. According to the united nations standard minimum rules for the treatment of Prisoners, solitary confinement is the term used to describe a prisoner who is held without any human contact for at least twenty- two hours per day. According to the United Nations Standard minimum Rules for In his autobiography, “Jawaharlal Nehru; An Autobiography,” the late Prime Minister Mr. Jawahar Lal Nehru expressed his opinions on solitary confinement. “Solitary confinement is a most painful experience, even for brief periods of time,” he claims. “For it to be prolonged for years is a terrible thing. It denotes the gradual and constant deterioration of the mind until it approaches insanity and the development of a vacant or terrified animal-like expression. Solitary confinement is the term used to describe a prisoner who is held without any human contact for the at least twenty- two hours per day, as per the united nations standard minimum rules for the treatment of prisoners. In his autobiography, “Jawaharlal Nehru; An Autobiography,” the late Prime Minister Mr. Jawahar Lal Nehru discussed his views on solitary confinement. Even for short periods of time, solitary confinement is a very painful experience, according to him. “It is a terrible thing for it to be delayed for years. It describes the mental decline that occurs over time and continuously until it resembles insanity and the emergence of a vacant or terrified animal-like expression.
History
A brief overview of the US’s history with isolation 18th century, late Solitary confinement was first used in the US by Quakers, who were motivated by humanitarian concerns to shield prisoners from the humiliations of overcrowded jails where whipping and public humiliation were commonplace. But it soon becomes apparent that extreme isolation causes permanent harm to inmates’ mental health, which then results in suicides. I hold this slow and daily tampering with the mysteries of the brain to be immeasurably worse than any torture of the body, as Charles Dickens stated after visiting a US prison in 1842.
1934 Solitary confinement has been out of favor for the while, but at Alcatraz, where a small group of the worst offenders are housed in isolation on “D block,” it is making a tentative comeback. One cell, dubbed “the hole,” is nothing more than a featureless concrete room with a hole in the floor and no light. Through a hole in the door, inmates are fed while remaining naked.
1950s A further return of solitary confinement is influcenced by studies on the impact of isolation on interrogation that were funded by the CIA. It is easier to carry out in prisons with cell corridors that are visible from a central tower. However, usage is still quite low.
1983 The Marion Lockdown was an event that occurred after two guards were killed at marion federal prison on Illinois, which resulted in the confinement of the entire preison. Marion is the first de facto supermax prison in the US due to the lockdown that has been maintained even after the crisis has subsided. Soon, facilities in other parts .
1990s The first supermax prisons begin to be built across the US, featuring isolation units where inmates may spend 22 ½ hours a day. Critics see the supermax as a shift towards a more purely punitive model for prisons, a culture change that makes solitary confinement more palatable.
1994 Bill Clinton’s crime bill gives federal grants to states that lengthen sentences; many of those states use the grants to build supermax prisons or solitary units to cope with their expanding prison populations. The construction of that infrastructure in turn leads to an explosion in the number of inmates in solitary. Between 1995 and 2000 the number increases by 40 per cent. By 2005, the figure has reached 80,000.
US will do the same.
IMPORTANT ELEMENT:
1.Rigorous Punishment:
According Solitary confinement may only be used when has the authority to sentence the offender to a harsh punishment. According to the Indian Penal Code of 1860, there are two types of imprisonment:
A.Rigorous
- Simple
In order to quality as a harsh punishment, a person must be forced to perform laboriouse tasks while incarcerated for which he is paid a minimum wage. The Code contains offenses for which a court may impose a lengthy sentence of imprisonment. Simple imprisonments, on the other hand, are only used for less serious offenses. The language of Section 73 of the Code makes it clear that only in cases where the Court has the authority to sentence the offender to a rigorous prison term may the Court order the offender to be kept in solitary confinement.
- Solitary confinement cannot exceed three months in the whole:
According to section 73 of the code, solitary confinement is only permitted for a maximum of three months and for no longer than 14 days at a time. It must be inferred from the section’s language that:
- If the term of imprisonment does not exceed beyond six months, then in that case the offender cannot be kept in solitary confinement for the time exceeding one month.
- If the term of imprisonment lies between six months and one year, then in that case the offender cannot be kept in solitary confinement for the time exceeding two months.
- If the term of imprisonment does exceed beyond one year, then in that case the offender cannot be kept in solitary confinement for the time exceeding three months.
| Term of Imprisonment | Term of Solitary Confinement |
| Less than 6 Months | 1 Month |
| 6 Months to 1 Year | 2 Months |
| More than 1 Year | 3 Months |
In India, judiciary and executive both have given powers to keep the prisoner in a solitary confinement but in both the cases it can be for a maximum period of three months only.
Solitary Confinement under Prisons Act, 1894
Section 29 of The Prisons Act, 1894 deals with solitary confinement and it reads as follows:“No cell shall be used for solitary confinement unless it is furnished with the means of enabling the prisoner to communicate at any time with an officer of the prison, and every prisoner so confined in a cell for more than twenty- four hours,whether as a punishment or otherwise, shall be visited atleast once a day by the Medical Officer or Medical Subordinate.”
Up to 24 hours a day can be spent alone in a cell during solitary confinement. Federal prisoners, for instance, typically spend two days a week entirely in isolation and the other five days for 23 hours a day in their cell with one hour outside for exercise. A fenced or walled “dog run” or an exercise room are the typical places where people exercise alone. Others have showers inside their cells, while some prisoners must be escorted to the shower in shackles. For visits or phone calls, they might not be permitted to leave their cells. Typically, solitary confinement cells are 6 feet by 9 feet to 8 feet by 10 feet in size. While some have bars, they typically have solid metal.
Conclusion
US Supreme court case Manna v.People from Illinois once said that life is more than just the presence of living things. It is impossible to deny the equivalent for the prisoners’ spirits. Article 21 of the Constitution guarantees it to every person, and not even the State has the authority to violate it. No matter his status—convict, under-detention, or detention—a prisoner ceases to be an individual. They also have all the rights that a liberated person has, but with some restrictions. Just being incarcerated does not deprive them of their fundamental rights. In any case, he continues to be charged with all of his Fundamental Rights while incarcerated. Upon receiving a wrongdoing sentence and being deined freedom.
References
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