They must also document “any other violations of fundamental rights or prison rules noticed during their visits,” it said.The judge said all the five DLSA chairpersons must submit their respective reports to TNSLSA by November 16.The directions follow the escape of 17 remand prisoners from the Thekkampatti sub-jail near Andipatti in Theni district around 11 pm on October 26. The escape triggered an extensive search operation involving multiple Tamil Nadu police teams.On October 27, police deployed three high-definition drones after suspecting that the escapees had taken refuge in the adjoining forest.
Five Special Task Force (STF) teams and four Tamil Nadu Special Police teams were pressed into service. Eight prisoners were apprehended before sunset, taking the total number of arrests to 13 by the end of the day.
Investigators said the prisoners had taken shelter in the forest and planned to emerge during daylight. The remaining four were arrested the following day at two locations.Most of the prisoners were aged between 20 and 25 and faced allegations involving theft, ganja possession and property-related offences.
They belong to different districts, including Theni, Madurai, Salem, Kanniyakumari and Dindigul.