SC allows Asaram full-time caregiver, highlights unequal prison care

The Supreme Court has permitted 85-year-old self-styled godman Asaram, convicted for raping a minor, to have a trained full-time caregiver in prison. While the court denied him further interim bail citing his age and ailments, the order has drawn attention to the starkly different treatment of other elderly and ailing prisoners, particularly those held in political cases.

The New Indian Express contrasts Asaram's privilege with the cases of Jesuit priest Stan Swamy, who died in judicial custody at age 84 after being denied timely hospital care, and professor G N Saibaba, who suffered solitary confinement and was denied treatment despite 90% disability. A 2024 paper by Bhavya Dore and Sukhada Tatke documents similar denial of medical care, mosquito nets, and even access to sunlight for prisoners booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

The publication argues that while granting a caregiver to an elderly prisoner may reflect a humane legal system, denying the same benefit to others, especially prisoners of conscience, reveals class and ideological bias. It calls for closer judicial scrutiny of unequal prison conditions across India's overcrowded jails.