Punjab govt to end VIP culture in jails soon: CM Bhagwant Mann

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Saturday said that his government would soon end the “VIP culture” by transforming the “VIP culture” in the state prisons into administrative blocks. In a video message, Mann announced that the prisons would be transformed into a ‘correctional facility’.

The Chief Minister expressed his government’s intention to reform the prison administration, saying that during the search operation, more than 700 mobile phones were being used by gangsters and criminals from different prisons in the last 50 days.

He said his party had promised to shut down the network of thugs and criminals from prisons once it came to power.

Mann said the inmates in the jail have been punished in court for violating the law and they cannot enjoy various facilities in the jail.

“It is amazing how anyone can become a VIP in jail after the court convicts him (for the crime),” he asked.

“We will put an end to VIP culture in prisons. People think they are (accused) in prison but the accused rest there, play badminton and tennis and watch TV. We are going to stop this culture,” the chief minister said in his video message. .

“The VIP rooms or VIP parts of the prison will be converted into administrative blocks,” he said.

The chief minister said the state government had so far seized 710 mobile phones from the jail in a special operation.

He said an investigation was underway to nab those in whose names the numbers were registered.

He said strict action would be taken against them soon.

The Chief Minister said the responsibilities of the jail officials and employees involved in phone smuggling in the jail would also be fixed.