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It is submitted that the 1st respondent never use handcuff inside the prison on the detenu. However, it is for the safety and security of the detenu, to use handcuff as and when he was produced to the forum.

It is submitted that, since the character, antecedents of the detenu Bhavani Bai @ Ahamed Ali S/o Naina Mohamed are not known to this prison administration, it is not possible for this Administration to inform about the nature of behavior of the detenu to the police escort party while handing him over to police escort to court, Advisory Board etc.,"

From the above stand of the first respondent, it is evident that the first respondent is relying on Rule 831(2) of Tamil Nadu Prison Rules, 1983, which states that handcuffing of under-trial prisoners may be done at the discretion of the Officer-in-charge of police escort and as per Rule 832(4), it is for the police to decide whether such prisoner shall be handcuffed or not. According to the counter affidavit, the first respondent never use handcuffs inside the prison on the detenu. However, for safe and security of the detenu, they used handcuff whenever the detenu was produced before the forum and since the character and antecedents of the detenu viz., Bhavani Bai @ Ahamed Ali are not known to the prison administration, such handcuffing was made while handing him over to Police escort to be produced before the Court or before the Forum.

2. I submit that whenever I was produced before the Court for extension of remand in the ground case in the detention order, the police escort they put handcuff on me and I came to know that the detenu, who are detained in Central Prison, Coimbatore whenever they produced before the Advisory Board at Madras the police escort put the handcuff on them and traveled from Coimbatore to Madras and come back from Madras to Coimbatore by putting handcuff.

3. I submit that the Hon'ble Apex Court time and again held that the police should not put handcuff on the all prisoners hence, unless this Hon'ble Court grant interim injunction restraining the respondents, their men or whomsoever acting their on behalf from putting handcuff on me, whenever the police escort produced before the Magistrate Courts or to be produced before the Advisory Board, High Court, Madras and this affidavit may treat the part and parcel of the affidavit filed by the writ petitioner and thus render justice."

16. We declare, direct and lay down as a rule that handcuffs or other fetters shall not be forced on a prisoner-convicted or under-trial-while lodged in a jail anywhere in the country or while transporting or in transit from one jail to another or from jail to Court and back. The police and the jail authorities, on their own, shall have no authority to direct the handcuffing of any inmate of a jail in the country or during transport from one jail to another or from jail to Court and back.

17. Where the police or the jail authorities have well grounded basis for drawing a strong inference that a particular prisoner is likely to jump jail or break out of the custody then the said prisoner be produced before the Magistrate concerned and a prayer for permission to handcuff the prisoner be made before the said Magistrate. Save in rare cases of concrete proof regarding proneness of the prisoner to violence, his tendency to escape, he being so dangerous/desperate and the finding that no other practical way of forbidding escape is available, the Magistrate may grant permission to handcuff the prisoner.