File image of Sabarmati jail in Ahmedabad, one of the facilities where the raid was being conducted.
| Photo Credit: Vijay Soneji
Gujarat police are conducting raids across 17 jails in the State to check if any illegal activities are taking place there and also to ensure that the inmates are getting facilities they are entitled to as per the law, a top official said.
As many as 1,700 police personnel, including officers, are involved in the operation that began Friday night, State Director General of Police (DGP) Vikas Sahay said.
The raids are being conducted in central jails in Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara, Rajkot and other cities as well in sub-jails, he told reporters on Friday night when the operation was underway.
“The purpose behind the raids is to find out if any illegal activities are taking place in the jails and to prevent them. Sniffer dogs have also been roped in this intense search operation,” Mr. Sahay said.
Another purpose of the operation is to find out whether the jail inmates are being provided facilities as per the rules properly, he said.
The police personnel involved in the operation wore body-worn cameras and the entire process was live telecast in the state police control centre in Gandhinagar where Minister of State for Home Harsh Sanghavi, DGP Sahay and other senior officers were present.
“During the operation, the police talked to the inmates and jail officials,” Mr. Sahay said.
A few hours into the raids, some smartphones were recovered from jail barracks, he said, adding that more information about the raids will be shared later in the day after the operation concludes.
“The police officials wore body-worn cameras to ensure transparency, and minister Sanghavi saw the live telecast of the raids at the state control room in Gandhinagar,” Mr. Sahay said.
The Sabarmati jail in Ahmedabad, one of the facilities where the raid was being conducted, houses alleged gangster from Uttar Pradesh, Atiq Ahmed, and many convicts of the Ahmedabad serial blasts.