The Legal Standard of Under Trial Prisoners' Rights in Bangladesh: Issues and Reality

Abstract

If we want people to have faith in the legal system, we must be able to get them their due process quickly. Constitutional protections include the right to a fair trial and the protection of one's life and freedom from arbitrary deprivation. The Supreme Court has, on multiple occasions, stressed the importance of conducting criminal proceedings promptly. The majority, or about two-thirds, of those who are undertrial in prison are now being held there. Despite the presumption of innocence, the vast majority of undertrials remain in jail because they cannot afford to post bail, a situation that exemplifies the systemic economic bias that keeps poor people in jail. While it is common practice to treat those in jail undertrial as if they are guilty, the law clearly states that an accused person is innocent until proven guilty. The attitude towards an accused has been such that when he/she becomes a suspect of an allegation, the society starts deeming him to be a convicted person without any justification. Not only that, prison authorities also treat them worse and sometimes provide them with very inhumane treatment which leads to death at times. This will discuss the background of the undertrial prisoners, who the prisoners and undertrial prisoners, what the rights are given to them under the domestic statutes, violation of these rights, international standards and mandate.