48 Foreign Nationals Languishing in Panjab, Haryana & Chandigarh Jails

On 17 Jul, the Punjab and Haryana High Court (PHHC) asked the Panjab govt. to explain why 48 foreign nationals remain in custody despite completing their sentences. The court was hearing a suo motu public interest litigation (PIL) initiated in April 2024 after it came to the fore that there is no system for imprisoned foreign nationals to get in touch with their family members. Justices GS Sandhawalia and Vikas Bahl noted instances where consular access was granted as early as 2008, yet nationalities remain unverified, and no deportations have occurred. Such cases are in Panjab, Haryana, and union territory of Chandigarh. Details shared by Panjab administration showed that in some cases, consular access had been provided but the nationality status has not been verified. In other cases, where nationality has been verified, the persons are still in custody and have not yet been deported. Chandigarh administration said they have 18 foreign inmates. The court has asked Chandigarh administration to file an affidavit clarifying how many of the foreign nationals, having completed sentences in the last five years, were deported and the procedure which was followed. Haryana is yet to file a report. In one case in Panjab, a Nigerian national remains in custody despite acquittal, pending an appeal. The court said, ‘In such circumstances, a larger human rights issue arises which needs to be addressed by both the states to put in policies and regulations to ensure that at least once in a month, foreign nationality convicts/under-trials are able to get in touch with their family members by way of phone-calls/video-calls which is to be arranged by the jail authorities.’