A two-year child was reunited with her mother, who was in Central Prison recently, thanks to the efforts of jail authorities.
The 21-year-old woman was pregnant when she was remanded and sent to the Central Prison, Puzhal. She had been arrested by the Avadi Police in connection with a murder case in which her husband, was the prime accused. He had also been remanded for reportedly murdering his grandmother over a property dispute. With the husband and wife lodged in prison, their two-year-old was reportedly left alone at home, until the maternal grandmother had arrived from her village.
V. Rukmani Priyadarsini , Jail Superintendent of Central Prison said, “The remand prisoner who was five months pregnant looked depressed and was weeping inconsolably, despite counselling. She looked worried about her child left behind at home. After speaking to her, we managed to trace the grandmother who had taken the child away to her village. We called her up and also sought the assistance of legal aid advocates. The grandmother brought the child here. When they met in the interview room, the mother and child were both ecstatic.
Prison manual cited
The Jail Superintendent said though the authorities wanted to help the mother and child, they were powerless to do so on their own. Following the due process of law, jail authorities filed a petition in the Magistrate Court seeking permission to reunite the child with her mother.
They cited the portion in the prison manual that permitted the prisoner to retain the child with her until the latter turns six years.
“We asked the grandmother to wait in the interview hall until we got the court pronounced its verdict. Then we obtained the order copy within a day and the child was reunited with the mother. The child will be given all medical assistance and the prisoner may get legal assistance from legal aid advocates if she needs,” Ms. Rukmani Priyadarsini added.
