2,329 prisoners to be freed over Covid-19 outbreak

Considering the novel coronavirus situation, the authorities concerned are going to release 2,329 prison inmates, including those who were jailed for bailable offences and were under trial.

Confirming the matter on Saturday, Md Manzoor Hossain, assistant inspector general of prisons told The Business Standard, "We have sent the final list to jails across the country. Central and district jail authorities will release these prisoners within a short period time."

"If a jail has only one prisoner, the authorities could release them easily. But there are more than hundred prisoners in many jails so they will need some time," he argued.

According to the Department of Prisons, the government has decided to release 2,884 prisoners from various jails across the country. Among them, 555 prison inmates were released in two phases last week – 170 on Saturday and 385 more on Sunday.

The respective prison authorities have sent a list of 2,329 more prisoners to 68 jails, including 13 central and 55 district jails.

Bangladesh jail authorities have started to release these prisoners, who are convicted of minor offences, as a precautionary measure to control infection amid the novel coronavirus pandemic.

According to the Department of Prisons, 953 prisoners are getting released from 17 jails in Dhaka division, 218 of them are in the Dhaka Central Jail.

Moreover, 77 inmates will be released in Mymensingh division, 69 in Sylhet division, 354 in Chattogram division, 97 in Barishal division, 198 in Rangpur division, 158 in Khulna division, and 423 in Rajshahi division.

According to the prison authorities, currently there are 88,771 prisoners in all the jails across the country.