Bareilly: A reward of Rs 25,000 has been announced for information about a rape convict who escaped from the Bareilly Central Jail in Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday.
The incident led to outrage after it came to be known that the prisoner, serving a life sentence for the rape of a minor, escaped after scaling the walls of the prison complex while the guards watched reels on social media.
Eleven officials of the prison have been suspended till now. They jailer Neeraj Kumar and his deputy Vandana Chowdhary. P C Meena, DG (Prisons) ordered the suspensions.
Strong departmental action has also been recommended against senior jail superintendent Avinash Gautam.
“Action has been taken against the personnel for dereliction of duty,” the DG was quoted by The Times of India as saying.
According to a report by News18, the convict, identified as 22-year-old Dinesh, was sent to work in a farm adjoining the prison along with 45 other inmates. Ten guards were assigned to keep a watch over them.
The on-duty guards were distracted which led to this embarrassing incident, a senior official said.
“They were busy watching reels on their mobile phones instead of keeping watch over inmates. Dinesh used that lapse to scale the wall and escape,” the official said, as quoted in the TOI report.
Dinesh is a resident of the Nanheda village in Amroha. The police have reportedly formed squads to search for him. Searches are underway in Amroha and other possible hideouts.
This is the second jailbreak in UP since 2024. In October, 2024, a jail inmate Harpal who was convicted for a murder had escaped somewhat similarly while working in the jail’s agricultural farm, according to a PTI report from that time.
The Bareilly Central Jail is a high-security prison that houses several high-profile and notorious criminals. Now, this second incident of jailbreak will raise questions on the elaborate arrangements such as CCTV cameras, police posts inside the campus and other measures. The repeat of such events casts doubt over the deployment of personnel during outside work.
Further investigation is underway and the authorities have said more action will be taken after detailed inquiry report is provided.