By IANS
Lucknow : With as many as 22 terrorists imprisoned in the Lucknow district jail, local authorities are on the verge of declaring a ‘house full’ for ultras.
Police officials said the special high security barrack, which is meant to house 20 hardened criminals in independent cells, has become overcrowded for the first time in many decades.
The presence of such a large number of terrorists — described as the highest in any single jail in Uttar Pradesh — is posing a serious security threat to jail authorities who are working on a plan to substantially beef up security systems.
Another reason why authorities are on tenterhooks is because of the recent revelations about clandestine use of cell phones by dreaded outlaws in prisons.
Only last month, jail authorities had discovered use of cell phones by a Dawood Ibrahim aide, Noora, who was gunned down just outside the prison gates after he attempted to escape from police custody while being taken to a court.
What had sent alarm bells ringing in top police circles was that Noora had been using cell phones barely two months after a simultaneous raid on all Uttar Pradesh jails that had led to startling revelations including use of cell phones by jail inmates.
The arrival of three Jaish-e-Mohammad militants who were arrested by the state’s Special Task Force (STF) here last week is now giving sleepless nights to jail authorities.
District Magistrate Chandra Bhanu told IANS: “While enhancing the security in and around the Lucknow district jail, we are also working out a plan to ensure more frequent monitoring of each of the cells in the high-security barrack.
“We have taken a decision to carry out periodical personal physical verification of each of the cells in the barrack that houses the 22 dreaded terrorists a dozen times a day.”
He added: “Three independent teams, each comprising three officials including a deputy jailor and two head wardens, are being formed to carry out two-hourly inspections of each of these cells.
“The three-member teams will have to personally visit each of the 20 cells in the high security barrack every two hours and log their report in a register.”
While most of the terrorists under trial are lodged in independent cells, a few are housing two inmates as the jail is overcrowded.