The Punjab government feels that inmates of prisons are human beings too — with all the human needs. So if a proposal currently in the pipeline goes through, inmates serving long sentences in the state could get to spend a week with their wives in “specially-designed residential suites” on the jail premises.

Highly placed sources told The Indian Express that the government is concerned that convicts starved of social interaction and sex frequently turn violent, and take to drugs and sodomy. “The new proposal is that a jailed inmate can have a seven-day stay inside the jail with his wife and children that would help him relax sexually and mentally,” said an official.

Punjab Jail Minister Hira Singh Gabhria confirmed the plan: “Sometimes a prisoner is lodged in jail for more than three years as an undertrial... His wife suffers for no fault of hers. The new system would help prisoners stay away from drugs and stay healthy once they stay with their families,” he told The Express.

The government is believed to have already given the nod to set up ‘residential quarters’ at the upcoming Faridkot and Kotakpura prisons, and wants to follow up in other prisons in the state as well. Each prison would have 15-20 family apartments with a bedroom, kitchen, bathroom and lobby.

“We are of the opinion that prisoners serving long terms should be extended this facility where they can stay with their wife and children on the jail premises after a fixed length of time,” an official attached with the minister said.

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