High Court seeks data on children staying with mothers in prisons
The court also issued a rule asking why directions should not be given to ensure the welfare, security and improved living conditions of such children inside correctional facilities.
The High Court has directed prison authorities to submit a detailed report on the number and ages of children living with their mothers in prisons across the country, within two months.
At the same time, the court issued a rule asking why directions should not be given to ensure the welfare, security and improved living conditions of such children inside correctional facilities.
The home secretary, law secretary, social welfare secretary and inspector general of prisons have been asked to respond to the rule.
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The order and rule were issued today (15 June) by a High Court bench comprising Justice Khizir Ahmed Choudhury and Justice Md Ziaul Haque, following a preliminary hearing on a writ petition filed by a Supreme Court lawyer.
Lawyer Quamrun Nahar Mahmud Deepa argued for the petitioner, while Deputy Attorney General Md Farhad Hossain represented the state.
The writ was filed on 9 June, attaching a report published in a national daily titled "Endangered Childhood in Prisons".
According to the report cited in the petition, under Rule 957 of the Bangladesh Jail Code, female detainees and convicts may keep their children with them until the age of four, while prison authorities may allow children up to the age of six in certain cases.
It also stated that children above six are handed over to relatives if available, and otherwise sent to government childcare institutions through the Department of Social Services.
Data from the Department of Prisons shows that 299 children were staying with their mothers in 74 central and district jails across the country as of 26 April 2026.
Of them, 153 are girls and 146 are boys. Many of the mothers are facing narcotics-related cases, while some are serving sentences and others are under trial.
Division-wise data shows 100 children in Dhaka, 90 in Chattogram, 25 in Rajshahi, 19 in Sylhet, 25 in Rangpur, 20 in Khulna, 4 in Barishal and 13 in Mymensingh divisions.
The highest number of such children is in Kashimpur Central Female Jail in Gazipur, where 51 children were staying as of 4 May. Of them, 24 are boys and 27 are girls.
Officials said most of these children stay in designated prison wards alongside female detainees, as many of the mothers are accused in murder and narcotics cases.
