Following the physical appearance of jailed Hurriyat leader Yasin Malik in the Supreme Court on Friday, Delhi prison authorities on Saturday suspended four staff members, including one deputy superintendent, two assistant superintendents, and one head warder of jail number 7 of Tihar Central prison, citing "serious security lapse" on the part of some officials.
Director General for Prisons Sanjay Baniwal stated that these four individuals have been prima facie, accountable for Malik's physical production before the Supreme Court after ordering a thorough inquiry into the situation.
Baniwal said, “I’ve already ordered a detailed inquiry in the matter to be conducted by deputy inspector general (prisons headquarters) Rajiv Singh to fix the responsibility of erring officials. He has been asked to submit his reports in this connection by Monday as it was a serious lapse on the part of jail officials”.
“We have a clear-cut instruction to produce Malik through video conferencing only. Instead, Malik was produced in person before the court. It’s a gross lapse on our part. The erring officials will not be spared,” Baniwal added.
Malik, who is serving a life sentence in a case involving funding for terrorism, appeared in the Supreme Court on Friday escorted by police, breaching a ban on the physical production of a terrorist. The solicitor general, Tushar Mehta, called this a "major security lapse" in a letter to the Union home secretary, Ajay Kumar Bhalla.
Mehta sought action against prison officials stating “how the separatist leader was allowed to step out in the absence of any order or authorization from court warranting his presence”.
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