Consider the following statements:
Statement-I: In India, prisons are managed by State Governments with their own rules and regulations for the day-to-day administration of prisons.
Statement-II: In India, prisons are governed by the Prisons Act, 1894 which expressly kept the subject of prisons in the control of Provincial Governments.
Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?
[amp_mcq option1=”Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II is the correct explanation for Statement-I” option2=”Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II is not the correct explanation for Statement-I” option3=”Statement-I is correct but Statement-II is incorrect” option4=”Statement-I is incorrect but Statement-II is correct” correct=”option1″]
Statement-II is correct. The administration of prisons in India is primarily governed by the Prisons Act, 1894. This Act is a central law passed during the British era, and it explicitly placed the subject of prisons under the control of the Provincial Governments. After independence, this continued with State Governments.
Statement-II is the correct explanation for Statement-I. The legal framework established by the Prisons Act, 1894, assigning control to the Provincial Governments, is the reason why prisons are a State subject and managed by State Governments today with their specific rules.