New Delhi, Nov 11 (IANS) Taking note of the increasing number of undertrials languishing in Tihar jail, the Delhi High Court Wednesday asked police to submit a detailed record of people who are in jail for more than seven years.
A division bench of Chief Justice Ajit Prakash Shah and Justice S. Muralidhar asked the Delhi Police to submit the report and said: “This is a serious issue and needs to be looked at. We have seen undertrials spend more time in jails for the offences that have less punishment. This is unfair.”

The court directed the Delhi Police to file a complete report by Dec 2, the next date of hearing.

The court observed that prisoners booked under the narcotics law and the foreigners act face the most time consuming trials and asked Delhi Police counsel Meera Bhatia to submit a detail report on all people charged under these laws.

The court was hearing a suo moto plea of a lawyer Manish Khanna who has filed a Right to Information (RTI) application on the condition of undertrials in Tihar jail.