Facelift for Tihar

Kiran Bedi won the 1994 Magsaysay Award for her commendable contribution to making Tihar Jail not just a secure prison but a rehabilitation centre. Some 17 years later, it could be said in the wake of the 2G-scam that never in the history of Tihar Jail have so many high-profile inmates been simultaneously accommodated in such a short span of time.

With the prime accused A Raja being jailed along with senior government officials and top executives of telecom companies, that part of Tihar where they are housed could even be renamed the 2G block. There are even reports that the high-profile inmates can hire TV sets to watch the latest on their trials and tribulations, their favourite serials and the odd movie produced by Bollywood or its vernacular siblings.

Perhaps the DMK, which announced a scheme for distributing free colour TV sets in its 2006 assembly election manifesto, could update its plan and now offer this facility to inmates of jails all over the country!

It could also be asked whether Raja and his co-accused should have access to 2G or 3G mobiles in Tihar. Every other serial or movie made in India shows even convicted underworld dons transacting their business on mobiles in jail and changing their sim-cards after each call so that they can't be traced. Those who have the time and the inclination could even write their prison-diaries.

Even the world's most popular authors like Jeffrey Archer have written books narrating their real-life experiences in jail. There is plenty of scope for philosophical treatises on time and space in Tihar. Dramatic diaries could even be made into movies like the 1984 Tamil release Oru Kaidhiyin Diary (A Prisoner's Diary), starring Kamal Haasan - the Hindi remake, Aakhree Raasta, starred Amitabh Bachchan.