– Raheem Khan
In a press conference held on Saturday, the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) Rajasthan accused the Jaipur Development Authority (JDA) and the Rajasthan government of contempt of the Supreme Court of India. The allegations pertain to the transfer of two-thirds of the land belonging to the Sampurnanand Open Air Camp (Jail) in Sanganer, Jaipur, for the construction of a satellite hospital, despite a restraining order from the Supreme Court.
The press conference, addressed by PUCL National President Kavita Srivastava and State President Bhanwar Meghvanshi, presented documents substantiating the claim that the JDA’s actions directly violate the Supreme Court’s order, which explicitly prohibited any reduction in the area of open air camps, prisons, or similar institutions.
According to PUCL, the Sampurnanand Open Air Camp, which originally spanned 3.04 hectares, has been drastically reduced to only 0.84 hectares. The remaining 2.2 hectares have been allocated to the Medical and Health Department for the establishment of a satellite hospital. PUCL asserts that this land grab not only compromises the living conditions of the camp’s prisoners but also endangers the continuation of an internationally renowned model of open prisons in India.
PUCL clarified that they are not opposed to the establishment of a public hospital in Sanganer but insist that the hospital should not be built at the expense of the open camp’s land. The open air camp, which houses hundreds of inmates and their families, including 393 prisoners as of August 31, 2024, is a critical part of the restorative justice system. Inmates at the camp are responsible for building and maintaining their own homes, and the land also hosts vital community resources such as a school, Anganwadi centre, and staff quarters.
The organisation highlighted the vulnerability of the prisoners as a factor that may have emboldened the state to proceed with the land acquisition. PUCL argued that the Rajasthan government likely assumed the prisoners would not protest the land seizure, fearing retribution that could jeopardise their relatively freer living conditions in the open camp.
The Supreme Court had previously recognised the Sampurnanand Open Air Camp as a model institution, recommending it as a best practice case for other states to emulate. Despite this, the Rajasthan government’s actions have jeopardised the future of this innovative approach to prisoner rehabilitation.
PUCL also pointed out that the Rajasthan High Court had been actively monitoring the situation, with an interim order issued on July 23, 2024, explicitly stating that no land should be transferred until a final decision is made. Yet, on July 30, 2024, the JDA issued an amended allotment letter, transferring the land to the Medical and Health Department, an act PUCL considers a clear violation of both the Supreme Court and Rajasthan High Court orders.
In response, PUCL has vowed to challenge the land transfer in both the High Court and Supreme Court, either by supporting the Amicus Curiae or intervening directly. They are demanding the immediate restoration of the land to the open camp and insist that the hospital be built on an alternative land.
PUCL has called for public support in their efforts to protect the Sampurnanand Open Air Camp and the principles of restorative justice it represents.
