Disgruntled inmates of Jashore Child Development Centre (JCDC) have staged protests overnight over a meagre food supply at the government facility.
An inmate and a policeman have been injured in the incident that occurred on early Sunday. Jashore Deputy Commissioner Tamizul Islam Khan and senior police officers intervened and brought the situation under control at around 1 am on Sunday. Additional District Magistrate Kazi Sayemuzzaman and Executive Magistrate AM Mamunur Rashid also visited the scene.
The inmates began to vandalise the centre at 10.45 pm on Tuesday, said Inspector Md Rokibuzzaman of Cachra Police Outpost. They broke the window panes and lighted a fire inside. The magistrate and police officials spoke to three representatives of the disgruntled inmates.
One common complaint was that the inmates were “not fed properly”. The authorities give them “half a plate of rice” for lunch and just “one piece of flatbread” for dinner which they said were not enough for them. The protesters also accused the staff at the correction centre of “grabbing food or money” given by the inmates’ families.
The magistrate and the police assured the protesters of taking necessary measures to increase the quantity of food and enhance quality, as demanded by them. They asked the representatives to calm the protesters.
“We’re trying to convince the inmates. The situation is under control,” said Tajul Islam, chief of Kotowali Police Station.
The complaints made by the inmates are not completely true, said Asit Kumar Sarkar, deputy director of the Department of Social Services.
“The centre has a capacity to house 150 inmates, while it has 248 living there. The inmates have different complaints and we assured them of resolving the problems. It took us three hours to calm the angry inmates,” said Magistrate Kazi Sayemuzzaman.
The inmates have been demanding Tk 72 in daily food allowances per person, said Zakir Hossain, supervisor of the centre. They also demanded different food and amenities for senior and junior inmates of the centre.
“They began to protest at night and the Ansar members in the centre failed to control it. More than 200 police then raided the centre.”
On Aug 13, 2020, three inmates died at Jashore Child Development Centre amid allegations of torture, while 15 inmates were injured, sending a shock across the country. Multiple probe panels were formed to investigate the incident but most of the recommendations were never implemented.
