Bengaluru Central Prison to be trifurcated for undertrials, convicts, women prisoners

Bengaluru Central Prison at Parappana Agrahara undergoing renovation to create separate facilities for undertrials, convicts, and women prisoners.

The Bengaluru Central Prison at Parappana Agrahara, the largest prison in the state that houses over 5000 inmates, is being split into three prisons on the same campus. There will be separate prisons for undertrials, convicts and women prisoners.

At present, only women prisoners are housed in a separate building, but within the same prison.

At present, the prison houses over 3900 undertrials, 1000 convicts, and 250 women prisoners. It is also one of the most overcrowded prisons, with over 5000 inmates, though its capacity is 4200. Separating these prisoners to avoid undertrials and petty criminals from coming in contact with larger gangs and notorious rowdy sheeters has been a long standing demand.

For instance, there have been two cases over the last 10 years where terror case convicts have allegedly radicalised rowdy sheeters who were undertrials in the prison, who eventually went out on bail to put together Jihadi terror modules in Bengaluru and were busted later.

This comes close on the heels of multiple controversies over irregularities inside the prison. Even as residents around the prison are struggling with poor mobile networks due to the Tower Harmonic Call Blocking System (T-HCBS), mobile usage has contined unabated inside the prison, including a recent case where an inmate allegedly orchestrated a murder outside from within the prison using WhatsApp.

Following the controversy over actor Darshan being given preferential treatment, wherein he was seen sitting with rowdy sheeters using mobile phones and smoking cigarettes in August, 2024, Home Minister G. Parameshwara had promised a revamp of the security at the prison complex.

The prison complex is now being renovated and segregation walls are being built to carve out three prisons dedicated to undertrials, convicts and women prisoners. Meanwhile, work is on to establish three separate administrations for the three prisons.