BHUBANESWAR: Under-trial prisoners (UTPs) lodged in Jharpada Special Jail are reportedly being delivered ganja in tennis balls thrown inside the prison by their associates.
Sources said there have been several instances when associates of the inmates have delivered the contraband by stuffing it inside tennis balls. While in some cases, the balls were seized by the jail staff, many others were picked up by the inmates.
This new way of delivering ganja to the jail inmates has come to the fore after an UTP was assaulted for tipping off authorities about consumption of ganja inside the prison.
Sources said tennis balls stuffed with ganja are mostly thrown inside the jail late in the night so that they can be collected easily by the inmates. As the jail is situated in the centre of the capital city, it becomes easy for the prisoners to obtain the contraband from their associates.
ADG, Prisons Amitabh Thakur has sought a detailed report from DIG, prisons Anusuya Jena about the seizure of various illicit items from the jail in the last three months. The report will contain details of the seizure and the ways in which contraband and tobacco items are being delivered to the inmates.
Thakur sought the report after an UTP Soumyakant Mohanty was allegedly assaulted by SK Kadir, son of gangster SK Hyder who was killed in an encounter with police in 2021, and his associates on September 1. Mohanty was reportedly attacked after he tipped off the district legal services authority (DLSA) about some inmates consuming ganja and tobacco products.
Mohanty reportedly told the DLSA that some inmates are paying bribes to the jail staff to receive special treatments like using mobile phones, meeting their family members and associates frequently and staying in separate cells.
Thakur has asked the DIG prisons to probe these allegations and submit a report. He has also directed the jail staff to record the statements of 40 to 50 inmates and collect details about the prisoners consuming the contraband and beedi.
Meanwhile, Laxmisagar police has registered a case in connection with the assault on Mohanty and launched an investigation into the matter. Mohanty named three UTPs including SK Kadir in his complaint. Probe is underway and action will be initiated accordingly, said an officer of Laxmisagar police station.