Implement e-module for premature release of prisoners, Madras High Court directs Tamil Nadu government

Key points

• The Madras High Court has directed Tamil Nadu government to kickstart the process of implementing the E-Prisons Early Release Processing Module, a digital system aimed at automating and expediting the remission and premature release of eligible prisoners lodged in various prisons across the State.
• A Division Bench of Justices Anita Sumanth and Sunder Mohan ordered that the module, prepared by Legal Services Authority (NALSA) and launched by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant recently, could be implemented first on a pilot-basis at the Central Prison in Puzhal near Chennai.
• The judges directed the High Court’s Registrar (Information Technology-cum-Statistics) to convene a meeting of all stakeholders including the officers from the Director General of Prisons, for proper implementation of the software by deploying the necessary infrastructure and manpower.
• The Registrar must convene the meeting within two weeks and file a compliance report before the court within a week thereafter confirming the...