One of the basic problems faced by Prison Administration is ‘Overcrowding’. Though it is said in one of the Supreme Court Judgment that bail is right of accused, still there is the constant increase in prison population. This constant increase in the number of prison population is leading towards various administration level problem as well as other social problems. In some of the cases prisoners are serving more time behind the bars than they should serve as their punishment. Most of the prison population is from lower social-economical strata. Their imprisonment disturbs the entire economy of the family. The prisoner is the sole earning members of the family. Therefore they cannot afford to engage competent advocates. There is a large section of the prison population whose cases are pending in courts and they are imprisoned waiting for trial. Many of them are booked for less serious or petty offences. VARHAD provides legal aid & guidance to under trial as well as convicted prisoners. When social worker receive request from the prisoner, first we pay home visit to access following information.

3. Whether family has already engaged a lawyer but incapable to keep a regular follow up with the lawyer

In above-mentioned cases VARHAD provides legal guidance and legal aid to prisoners. If the family is not capable to engage lawyer we guide them either to apply for government legal aid committee or we engage lawyer from our network. If the family has already engaged lawyer but incapable to keep follow up in such cases our social worker keep regular contact with lawyer & inform the family as well as the prisoner about the present status of the cases. The convicted prisoners are provided help for appeal in high court, application for bail, trial, parole and furlough petition. The social workers act as a liaison between the prisoners, his family and the lawyer. We provide legal guidance and legal aid to the prisoners through a network of advocates from lower courts, sessions court to High Courts. We identified lawyers who are ready to give legal aid to the needy and poor prisoners. We have formed a network of lawyers in lower court, session court and high court that took up the cases, which referred by us. They are paid minimum honorarium for the cases. Due to this activity we are able to access the present status of the cases right from lower court to High court. At least Reporting of present status of cases would give some relief to prisoners who are rotting behind the bars.