The Tamil Nadu Prison Department has informed the Madras High Court that 153 remand prisoners and 22 convicts remain incarcerated across the state despite being granted bail or having their sentences suspended. 

The delay in their release has been attributed primarily to delays in receiving bail orders from trial courts, the State disclosed in an affidavit filed on December 9.

A bench comprising Justices S.M. Subramaniam and M. Jothiraman, which is hearing a suo motu petition on undertrials and convicts still in prison despite bail or suspension of sentence, took note of the submission. The Court added the Registrar General as a party to the case. 

The Bench directed the Registrar General to expedite the release process for such prisoners and ensure they could access assistance from the state legal aid services.

“The learned Additional Public Prosecutor would submit that there is delay in receiving the bail orders from the District Courts. As far as the High Court is concerned, order copies are received immediately. In this regard, it is necessary to implead the Registrar General, High Court, Madras to ensure that the process in this regard is accelerated to ensure that the prisoners languishing unnecessarily in prisons stand released by completing the formalities and by filing necessary petitions through the Legal Aid Services before the competent Court,” the High Court said.

The Court observed that the Tamil Nadu government had issued a government order on February 5, 2024, to implement a central government scheme aimed at providing financial assistance to needy prisoners. 

It directed the state to submit a status report by January 6, 2025, outlining the financial aid distributed to inmates thus far. 

Additionally, the Court included the Puducherry Chief Secretary as a party to the suo motu proceedings to ensure that prisoners in the Union Territory also benefit from the scheme.