Mumbai: Referring to rising no of sexual assault cases in prisons, two-city based activists have written a letter to CM Devendra Fadnavis stating the Government should permit conjugal visits in order to keep these assaults in check.
Citing examples from countries like Brazil, Denmark, Germany, and Australia where allowing conjugal visits has brought down the assault rate the two activists throw light upon it.
Written by Farooque Dhala the letter reads as, “Conjugal visits help improve the functioning of a marriage by maintaining an inmate’s role as a husband or wife”, adding, “Prisoners should be allowed to see their wives and have intimate relations with them by giving them a suitable place in the jails. When someone goes to prison, they are being punished for a crime, but their partner has not committed any crime”.
Dhala told the sources, “I wrote to the authorities only after observing the same for several years. We need to understand the needs of every individual and if that helps in bringing down sexual assault, the government should think about it”.
However, reacting to the idea, a senior IPS officer said, “Allowing it for inmates who are convicted for heinous crimes does not go down well” reported the sources.