Section 64 in The West Bengal Correctional Services Act, 1992
64. Transfer of prisoners.—
(1)Notwithstanding anything contained in section 45, the Inspector General of Correctional Services may, in his discretion or on an application made to him, transfer any prisoner from one correctional home to another within West Bengal or from a correctional home in West Bengal to a correctional home or prison in any other State with the consent of the Inspector General of Prisons of that State. Such prisoner shall be given the facility of writing letters to his relatives and friends intimating his transfer to a different correctional home and the number of letters so written by him shall not be taken into account for the purpose of sub-section (1) of section 50.(2)The Inspector General of Correctional Services may, on the request of the Inspector General of Prisons of any other State, transfer a prisoner confined in a correctional home, who is domiciled in West Bengal to a prison in that State where the prisoner is required in connection with the trial of any offence committed by him in that State.(3)(a)Subject to the provisions of this Act and the rules made thereunder, the Superintendent of a district correctional home shall have the power—(i)to transfer a prisoner from a district correctional home to the central correctional home on grounds of overcrowding;(ii)to transfer a prisoner, sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for any period exceeding three years, from the district correctional home to the central correctional home;(iii)to transfer a female prisoner, whether convicted or undertrial, to the central correctional home if there is no other female prisoner in the district correctional home;(iv)to transfer a criminal lunatic or non-criminal lunatic to the central correctional home or, if there is any standing order of the Inspector General of Correctional Services requiring lunatics to be kept in custody in a particular correctional home, to that correctional home, provided no order for his transfer to any lunatic asylum or mental asylum or mental hospital is received during the period of one month from the date of admission of the lunatic into the correctional home.(b)In all cases referred to in clause (a), the Superintendent shall send immediate communication to the Inspector General of Correctional Services, and shall give prior intimation to the Superintendent of the correctional home to which the prisoner is transferred about such transfer.(c)The Superintendent of the correctional home to which a prisoner is transferred from a district correctional home shall receive the prisoner so transferred, and the transfer order made by the Superintendent of such district correctional home shall be considered sufficient warrant for taking into custody of such prisoner.(d)If the prisoner sentenced to imprisonment for any period exceeding three months is admitted into a subsidiary correctional home, he shall, within 15 days from the date of his conviction, be sent by the Superintendent to the district correctional home, and if there is no such district correctional home, to the central correctional home.(e)If a prisoner is convicted by a courtmartial and is confined in any correctional home not being situated in his home district and if such prisoner expresses his desire to be transferred to a correctional home which may be nearer to the place of ordinary residence of his family, he shall be transferred to such correctional home, and in all cases in which a court-martial prisoner expresses such desire, the Superintendent shall, as expeditiously as possible, obtain order from the Inspector General of Correctional Services for the transfer of such prisoner to such correctional home and, on receipt of such order from the Inspector General of Correctional Services, the Superintendent shall take steps for carrying out the order.(f)In cases of emergency and natural calamity like cyclone, flood, prevalence of widespread epidemic disease, earthquake or violent riot, if the keeping of prisoners in the correctional home becomes dangerous to the lives of the prisoners, the Superintendent of the district correctional home may, without the prior permission of the Inspector General of Correctional Services, transfer the prisoners to the central correctional home or to any other place making adequate security arrangements. Such place of temporary dwelling for the prisoners shall be deemed to be the correctional home for so long as the prisoners are detained there.(g)If a prisoner, who is not ordinarily a resident of West Bengal, makes an application for transfer of himself to a correctional home or prison in his home State, the Superintendent shall immediately forward such application to the Inspector General of Correctional Services. On receipt of such application, the Inspector General of Correctional Services shall communicate with the Inspector General of Prisons of the State to which the prisoner concerned wants to be so transferred, and if the Inspector General of Prisons of the other State gives consent to the transfer of such prisoner, the Inspector General of Correctional Services shall inform the Superintendent to arrange for the transfer of such prisoner. On receipt of such information from the Inspector General of Correctional Services, the Superintendent shall make arrangements for the transfer of such prisoner to such correctional home or prison.(h)If in any subsidiary correctional home there is excessive overcrowding or if there occurs any emergency of the nature mentioned in clause (f), the Superintendent shall have the power to transfer such number of under-trial prisoners as may be deemed necessary to the district correctional home or, where there is no separate district correctional home, to the central correctional home without the prior permission of the Court by which the prisoner was remanded to custody or to which the prisoner is to be produced for trial. The Superintendent of such subsidiary correctional home shall send immediate intimation of such transfer to the aforesaid Court.(i)If any process issued by a Court of competent jurisdiction requiring the attendance of a prisoner confined in a correctional home for the purpose of giving evidence in any suit, trial or proceeding pending before such Court, is served upon him or if any intimation for production of such prisoner for answering any charge is received from any Court, the Superintendent shall take steps for production of such prisoner before such Court on the appointed date, and may, for the said purpose, transfer such prisoner to the correctional home which is located nearest to such Court with instructions for production of the prisoner so transferred before the Court on the appointed date.(j)The State Government may provide for the transfer of prisoners, not covered by the provisions of this Chapter, in such manner as may be prescribed.(4)Upon the transfer of a prisoner preparing for an academic examination under any University or Board or recognised institution to a correctional home where there is no co-examiner nor are there necessary books in the library thereof, he may apply to the Superintendent for his re-transfer to a correctional home having a co-examinee and a library with necessary books, and the Superintendent may, with the concurrence of the Inspector General of Correctional Services transfer him to a correctional home having a co-examinee and a library with necessary books.(5)When a female prisoner is transferred under sub-section (1), the Superintendent shall arrange for a female attendant to accompany her during the entire journey, and a female prisoner shall not be made to travel with male prisoners in the same vehicle or in the same compartment of a train during journey on transfer from one correction home to another.(6)When a prisoner is transferred under sub-section (1), he shall not be hand-cuffed or tied with a rope during from one correctional home to another.(7)When a female lunatic is transferred from a correctional home to an asylum or from an asylum to a correctional home or is released from a correctional home and sent to the custody of her relative or friend or when a recovered female lunatic is sent to the Court of trial, the Superintendent shall engage a female warder or any other female attendant to accompany her during the journey in addition to the usual police escort. If it is not possible for the Superintendent to engage a female warder or any other female attandent to accompany a female lunatic to be transferred to an asylum, he shall request the Superintendent of the asylum to send a female keeper who shall arrive at the correctional home on the date of transfer of the female lunatic and accompany her during the journey.(8)No prisoner shall be transferred from one correctional home to another or be allowed to proceed to attend a Court for trial unless the Medical Officer certifies him to be physically fit to undertake the journey for the purpose. The Court shall be requested to postpone the trial of the prisoner if the Medical Officer does not certify the prisoner to be fit to attend the Court.
