Judicial panel may visit Nabha jail soon

BHOPAL: A one-member judicial commission, which is probing jailbreak and subsequent encounter of 8 SIMI operatives on city outskirts in October, is likely to visit Nabha high-security jail in Punjab soon, to study the jail-break in which eight, including two terrorists escaped a couple of days after that from the northern state.
The panel had visited Gaya jail in Bihar, from where 7 Naxalites had escaped in 2008, some years ago, in first fortnight of this month, sources said.The visit to Nabha jail from where eight prisoners had escaped in November last year was scheduled in May, but owing to some reasons, it was postponed, said sources.
“The purpose of visit is to study modus operandi and loopholes that led to the jail-break. Besides investigating the jailbreak and subsequent encounter, making recommendations to ensure such incidents do not recur, is also part of the commission’s work,” sources said.
The government had announced the judicial commission headed by Justice (retd) SK Pandey five days after eight alleged SIMI activists were killed in an encounter following their escape from Bhopal Central Jail on October 30 night last year. The government issued the notification for the panel on November 7.
The commission’s terms of reference included probe into the jailbreak and encounter that led to the killing of eight SIMI operatives near Bhopal, including the sequence of events leading to encounter and whether the action was justified.
The other terms of reference include sequence of events leading to the jailbreak, fixing the responsibility of officials responsible for it and recommendations to prevent recurrence of jailbreak.
It is due to the fourth point of reference wherein the commission is asked to make recommendations to prevent recurrence of jailbreak that the panel is studying other jailbreaks, sources said.