For no fault of his, 18-month-old Pranay has been languishing in the district jail since Monday.
The baby landed in the district jail on June 3 along with his mother Kavita Tola (27) of Rangamatia village under Basta police limits. The woman was arrested for possessing ganja and her accused husband Amalendu Tola is absconding.
Excise officials said Pranay’s father Amalendu used to supply ganja to various parts of the district and also sell the contraband at his betel shop at Kasaphal fishing base. He had stocked 115 kg of ganja in his house when police raided it on Monday. As Amalendu managed to escape before police reached his house, cops nabbed his wife. Kavita denied any involvement in the ganja trade. “Neither I nor my husband are in any way connected with the trade. A friend of my husband had come with the bags and told me that he would take it the next day. I did not know what was inside the bags,” she said.
Meanwhile, social activists alleged that Excise officials violated Human Rights Act and Juvenile Justice Act by lodging the kid in the jail. “The philosophy behind these acts is to keep a child in a healthy environment away from the influence of criminals. Jails are not considered as place of safety,” said social activist Dilip Parida.
Jail authorities, however, said the child was being looked after well.