Prisoners’ Conjugal Visitation Rights in India: Changing Perspectives

Abstract

Right of conjugal visitation remains an old debate which has resurged recently with the Jasvir Singh decision of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The international community is divided over the boons and banes of such a benefit being extended to convicts. Some construe it as a privilege; the recent trends argue that the same is an extension of our basic human rights, constitutionally enshrined as being inherently ‘fundamental’ and hence sacrosanct. With the modern penal systems across the globe embracing the Reformative Theory of punishment, the idea that a criminal is a product of the social, economic and environmental conditions is increasingly gaining acceptance. By that logic, a better way to humanize the social ecology within the four walls of the prison and to reform that individual is by allowing conjugal visitation. The article is primarily a stakeholder analysis of the problem, the key stakeholders being the prisoner, his/her spouse, the correctional department and the society. It will further discuss the possible benefits and the setbacks of conjugal visitation, the varied international stance and India’s take on the issue in light of the Jasvir Singh judgement. Finally, a determination will be attempted as to whether such a correctional provision is a right arising out of a broad interpretation of Article 21 of our Constitution.