Opinion: Supreme Court order to delete caste references in prison data will not end discrimination

On October 3, the Supreme Court declared that provisions in state prison rules that used caste as the basis to allocate work to inmates and segregate them were unconstitutional. In a landmark judgement, the court held that such practices violate the fundamental rights guaranteeing equality and life and those outlawing discrimination, untouchability and forced labour.

The court ordered that prison manuals be revised. It also told the District Legal Services Authority and the Board of Visitors to monitor prisons to ensure that caste-based practices do not continue.

In the same vein, the court directed that the “caste column” and any references to caste in prison records be deleted. However, this will erase from the criminal justice system caste demographics that have been a crucial tool for understanding and addressing disparities in prisons.

The court was ruling on a petition filed by journalist Sukanya Shantha, who had reported on caste-based segregation and work allocation in prisons. Her report showed how prison manuals assigned lower-caste prisoners the “impure” work of sweeping and cleaning sewers while upper-caste prisoners were given roles in kitchens, medical rooms and offices – work that is not considered “polluting” or “dirty”.

VIDEO | The Supreme Court has set aside discriminatory provisions of prison manuals of...

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