Eyewitnesses claim Byculla jail staff terrorised inmates

Mumbai: The eyewitness accounts of inmates mentioned in the 990-paged chargesheet accessed by The Asian Age revealed that Byculla women's jail officer Manisha Pokharkar and five other accused jail staff regularly terrorised the prison inmates.

Pokharkar and five others have been chargesheeted by the Mumbai crime branch for allegedly murdering inmate Manju Shetye on June 23.

Pokharkar allegedly used abusive language against the inmates. The eyewitnesses claimed in the chargesheet that she would frown if they drank water from a RO unit of Aquaguard installed inside the jail premise. They also alleged that a few days before her death, Shetye was beaten by Pokharkar and therefore she had applied for a transfer to another jail.

A protest erupted inside the Byculla women's prison on June 24 after inmate Manjula Shetye died in the jail.

The prison authorities initially registered an accidental death report but after the crime branch took over the case, Manisha Pokharkar, Wasima Shaikh, Shital Shegokar, Surekha Gulve, Aarti Shingne and Bindu Naikade were arrested.

The crime branch recently filed the chargesheet in the chief metropolitan magistrate court against the six accused. The statements of eyewitnesses and jail inmates are mentioned in the chargesheet.

Eyewitnesses Vaishali Mudade, Ranjana Rathod, Mariyam Shaikh, Fazlin Shaikh, Saidulnisa Ansari stated that Pokharkar had terrorised the inmates. They also claimed that if any prisoner came in the way of Pokharkar, she used to shout at them. An eyewitness claimed, "Pokharkar would harass them over petty issues."

Ranjana Rathod and Mariyam Shaikh claimed in their statement that a few days before the incident, a lawyer had come to guide inmates on a certain subject and Shetye was given the responsibility to keep watch on inmates. They said that Pokharkar insulted her in front of everyone and threatened her, saying that she will be beaten up like other inmates. Rathod also stated that few days after the threat, she found injury marks on Shetye's face. Another jail inmate, Fazlin Shaikh was also beaten up by Pokharkar because she had brought kheema paav to jail after she met her family in the court.