Police, Courts and Justice in India
Undertrials: Waiting in Jail Without Conviction
Why around three-quarters of India's prisoners have not been convicted, the human and economic costs of long pre-trial detention, and reform steps.
Most people in Indian prisons have not been convicted.
The numbers
According to NCRB Prison Statistics, around 75 percent of prisoners are undertrials: awaiting trial or its outcome.
Who they are
Undertrials are disproportionately poor, less educated, and from marginalised communities, often unable to afford bail or lawyers.
Costs
- Lost income for families.
- Overcrowded prisons, with occupancy above capacity in many states.
- Public spending on detention.
- Human costs: some spend years in jail for minor offences before acquittal.
Legal provisions
- Section 436A of the old Criminal Procedure Code (now carried into the new law) allowed release after serving half the maximum sentence as an undertrial.
- The 2024 law provides that first-time offenders can be released after serving one-third of the maximum sentence.
Reforms
- Faster trials.
- Legal aid at arrest.
- Undertrial Review Committees in districts.
A young man arrested for a minor theft can't pay bail. He spends two years in jail awaiting trial, far longer than any sentence he might have received.
About three-quarters of Indian prisoners are undertrials.
- About 75 percent of India's prisoners are undertrials.
- They are disproportionately poor and marginalised.
- Detention causes lost income and overcrowding.
- New laws allow release of first-time offenders after one-third of the maximum sentence.
No recording for this one yet - EconReader can read it aloud for you.