Working with silenced under-trial prisoners in India during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

ABSTRACT The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic was an entirely new challenge for the entire nation of India. As black clouds of poverty and unemployment hovered over the marginalized sections of the society, the faulty criminal justice system totally neglected its vulnerable under-trial prisoners. This story is about how one group – Ambedkar Group, endeavored to assist the highly stigmatized and silenced under-trial prisoners, who had been released on bail prior to the pandemic and nationwide lockdown. They had been left on their own with no support system or resources to survive. The Ambedkar Group decided to take up their cause.