Much More Needs to Be Done for Prison Reforms: Justice Sandeep Mehta
– Prof. Vartika Nanda’s Book ‘J Se Jail’ Launched at IGNCA
New Delhi, Tuesday, 21 July:
The Kalanidhi Division of the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) organized the launch and discussion of ‘J Se Jail ‘, a new book by media educator and prison reformer Prof. Vartika Nanda. The book has been published by Prabhat Prakashan, New Delhi. The Chief Guest at the event was Justice Sandeep Mehta, Honourable Judge of the Supreme Court of India. The programme was chaired by Shri Rambahadur Rai, President of IGNCA, while Dr. Sachchidanand Joshi, Member Secretary of IGNCA, attended as the Guest of Honour.
Speaking on the occasion, Justice Sandeep Mehta said that prisons and prisoners are often considered taboo subjects in Indian society. He congratulated Prof. Vartika Nanda for writing a book on such an important topic. He said that the way prison life has been presented in the book is remarkable and that the effort to bring hope and light into the lives of prisoners is truly inspiring.
Justice Mehta said that judges deliver their decisions on the basis of evidence, legal arguments and the law. However, because of the huge number of cases before the courts, it is often difficult to examine the personal circumstances of offenders or their potential for reform. He added that important work is already being done in the field of prison reforms and referred to the open prison at Sanganer in Rajasthan as a positive example.
He further said that while a person may lose his or her freedom because of a court judgment, no one should lose their dignity. Every individual has the right to live with dignity. Raising an important question, he asked whether prisoners do not have the right to return to society as responsible citizens. He answered that they certainly do. Concluding his address, Justice Mehta said that the right to live with dignity can be strengthened by improving the open prison system. He emphasized that much more can still be done for prison reforms.
Chairing the programme, Shri Rambahadur Rai described the book as an excellent novel from the perspective of an ordinary reader. He said that Prof. Vartika Nanda has written the book to present prisons as places where learning and positive change are also possible. Sharing memories from his own period of imprisonment, he remarked that if political prisoners had continued to be present in jails, prisons might not have become so frightening and prison reforms would have received greater attention.
Guest of Honour Dr. Sachchidanand Joshi said that the book is not merely a novel but a living document of prison life. Sharing some of his own experiences related to prisons, he observed that one can truly understand prisons only by seeing them from the inside, and that such an experience changes one’s perspective completely.
Speaking about the journey of writing the book, Prof. Vartika Nanda said that all the characters in the novel are inspired by people she met in different prisons. She shared that she had visited many prisons and had never returned empty-handed. She carried back with her the sadness, pain, and struggles of the inmates. She described prison as her greatest teacher, saying that it had given her invaluable experiences and had made her stronger and more capable.
The programme was conducted by Shri Prabhat Kumar of Prabhat Prakashan, who also delivered the vote of thanks.
