Two related bits of news triggered the mention of the Nelson Mandela Rules. One concerned Anmol Bishnoi’s incarceration in a high-security cell with 24-hour surveillance and two warders inside the prison to keep him safe from rival gangsters due to a high threat perception. The other was a statement by Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta about plans to shift Tihar Jail to another location because of restricted space and severe overcrowding in order to bring relief to prisoners.
Bishnoi, who was deported from the US, is the brother of dreaded gangster Lawrence Bishnoi. He was arrested by the National Investigation Agency for his alleged involvement in the murders of Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala in 2022 and NCP leader Baba Siddique in 2024, as well as the firing incident outside actor Salman Khan’s residence last year. His security was stepped up amid suspicion that a gang war between the Lawrence Bishnoi and Goldy Brar gangs could intensify and spill over within Tihar Jail, where several of Anmol’s rivals are lodged. In May 2023, gangster Tillu Tajpuria was murdered inside Tihar Jail 8—a high-risk ward—by members of the rival Jitender Gogi gang.
The United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, known as the Nelson Mandela Rules, set international standards for the humane treatment of prisoners and the management of penal institutions. These rules highlight a sharp contrast between standard prison conditions and the extraordinary security measures being applied in Bishnoi’s case.
Tihar Jail, designed to hold 10,026 prisoners, currently houses over 19,500 inmates. Established in 1958, it is one of India’s largest prison complexes, comprising nine prisons spread over more than 400 acres.
India formally follows the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, advocating the humanisation of prison institutions. Yet, the prison system continues to be governed by colonial-era practices—such as classification of prisoners based on social status, delegation of prison work along caste lines, meagre wages, and inadequate medical facilities.
The Supreme Court, through multiple judgments, has repeatedly emphasised the need to reform and decongest prisons through a human rights framework. Rehabilitation becomes impossible in overcrowded prisons, where infrastructure is stretched and basic amenities are compromised. The statistics are alarming.
The national average occupancy rate exceeds 120 percent, with some district jails operating at 136 percent capacity, severely straining infrastructure and violating the principles laid down in the Nelson Mandela Rules. A vast majority—approximately 73 to 76 percent—of inmates are undertrials, held for long periods without conviction, further aggravating overcrowding. There is a severe shortage of medical staff, including doctors and psychologists, leading to a rise in mental health issues among inmates. Significant vacancies persist among medical officers and other essential personnel, alongside a chronic lack of basic amenities and hygienic living conditions.
The Nelson Mandela Rules are the revised United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, adopted in December 2015 to update the original 1955 standards. They honour Nelson Mandela’s legacy by focusing on humane prison conditions, rehabilitation, and prisoners’ rights. The rules explicitly prohibit torture, mandate non-discrimination, and stress reintegration into society. They provide a global framework for effective prison management, covering every stage from admission to release, and ensuring dignity and justice for inmates.
Named in honour of Mandela’s 27 years of incarceration, the rules comprise 122 provisions addressing prisoner rights, healthcare, education, work, and release. Their core principles include an absolute prohibition of torture and cruel treatment; universal application without bias based on race, gender, or other factors; minimising differences between prison life and life outside to preserve dignity; and a strong emphasis on rehabilitation through education, vocational training, and reintegration support.
While the Constitution does not explicitly enumerate prisoner rights, Article 21—the right to life and dignity—has been judicially interpreted to mean that prisoners retain all rights not lost by confinement. This aligns closely with Mandela’s vision of treating all citizens, even those behind bars, with dignity. The Home Ministry’s Model Prison Manual 2016 and its updated 2023 version incorporate the Nelson Mandela Rules. Yet persistent shortcomings have allowed fugitives such as Vijay Mallya and Nirav Modi to cite prison conditions as legal grounds to resist extradition.
Training tools such as “Mandela Chess” are also being used to educate prison staff on humane prison management. Inspired by Nelson Mandela’s use of chess as a strategic tool during his imprisonment on Robben Island, the game uses scenario-based questions to teach the principles underlying the Mandela Rules. It reinforces the importance of education, vocational training, and rehabilitation.
In a similar spirit, new laws like the The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) 2023—replacing older provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973—seek to improve the rights of undertrials in line with international standards.
Judicial scrutiny of solitary confinement has also played a critical role in shaping prison jurisprudence. In State of Uttarakhand vs Mehtab, the Uttarakhand High Court questioned the constitutionality of solitary confinement, holding that it is an additional deterrent imposed by prison administration and not part of the sentence. The Court ruled that solitary confinement is unlawful until a prisoner’s constitutional, legal, and basic rights expire, and that even then it must be imposed for the shortest possible duration. It described solitary confinement as barbarous, inhumane, and violative of Articles 20 and 21 of the Constitution.
In Sunil Batra vs Delhi Administration, the Supreme Court held that prisoners are entitled to all fundamental rights consistent with incarceration, and that solitary confinement under the Prisons Act must follow fair procedure, failing which it would violate Article 21. In Prem Shankar Shukla vs Delhi Administration, the Court ruled that every prisoner has a right against solitary confinement, handcuffing, bar fetters, and torture.
In Kishore Singh Ravinder Dev vs State of Rajasthan, the Supreme Court held that solitary confinement is permissible only in exceptional cases for security reasons, and that prolonged isolation amounts to torture and a breach of law. Solitary confinement, the Court ruled, may be imposed only in the rarest of rare cases—grounds that are cited in the case of Anmol Bishnoi.
The Supreme Court’s Report on Prisons in India, released by President Droupadi Murmu on November 5, 2024, observed that a humane prison system cannot be achieved in isolation. It requires coordinated efforts across the justice administration system to secure the liberty and dignity of prisoners. In its foreword, then Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud noted the need for greater discussion on the reluctance of district courts to grant bail, the adoption of alternative methods of imprisonment, and timely disposal of cases.
These recommendations have led to increased use of video conferencing for trials, offering some relief to undertrials. NGOs have also introduced education, art, and meditation programmes to humanise the prison environment.
Yet, infrastructural failures continue to undermine reform. Tihar Jail’s semi-open prison section—where 38 well-behaved prisoners were allowed greater freedom during the day—recently suffered roof collapses, forcing authorities to move inmates back into closed cells on the chief minister’s orders.
Despite the Model Prison Manual, 2016 and the Model Prison and Correctional Services Act, 2023, deep-rooted problems persist. A Human Rights Watch report on Indian jails starkly noted that police detention in India remains a disgrace, with systematic torture of detainees rivalling practices in some of the world’s most repressive regimes.
Indian prisons remain far from fully enforcing the Nelson Mandela Rules. Mandela himself slept on a thin mattress, performed hard labour in a lime quarry, and was denied visits from his children during his incarceration on Robben Island—now a tourist attraction. Reflecting on his experience, Mandela famously said: “It is said that no one truly knows a nation until one has been inside its jails. A nation should not be judged by how it treats its highest citizens, but its lowest ones.”
—The writer is former Senior Managing Editor, India Legal magazine
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