A serious security breach is under investigation at Bengaluru’s Parappana Agrahara Central Prison after multiple videos surfaced showing high-profile inmates using mobile phones and enjoying facilities resembling VIP privileges.
The videos, shared on social media and now under review by prison authorities, show Umesh Reddy, a convicted serial rapist and murderer, reportedly using two Android phones and one keypad mobile inside the prison. Reddy was accused of 18 murders and 20 rapes in Karnataka, Maharashtra and Gujarat between 1996 and 2002. He was eventually convicted in nine cases and sentenced to 30 years in prison.
Another clip shows Zuhaib Hameed Shakeel Manna (also reported as Juhad Hamid Shakil Manna), an alleged operative of the banned outfit ISIS, drinking tea, scrolling through a phone, with a television or radio audible in the background.
Other inmates, including gold-smuggling accused Tarun Raju, were also seen using phones and even cooking inside the prison.
The state government moved swiftly after the videos came to light. Home Minister G Parameshwara said he “wouldn’t tolerate” VIP treatment inside the jail. The prison department has ordered a departmental inquiry.
The Additional Director General of Prisons B Dayananda visited the facility and directed officials to launch an investigation into who made the videos and who leaked them.