Annual Report, 1928-29
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II ANNUAL REPORT, 1928-29. Lahore: Printed. b, the Superintendent, Covtn~.mcut Printinr, Pa.njab. 1929. PUNJAB PRISONERS' AID SOCIETY. Office Bearers. Patron :-His ExcellP!WJ' Sir GEOFFREY FrTZIIEllVEY DEMoN'nronENCY, Kc.v.o., K.c.u., C.B.E., I.C.S., Governor of the Punjab. President :-Hon'ble ~Ir. A. U. Srow, O.B.E., I.C.S., Finance illember, Punjab. Vice-Presi.lcnls :-Lula lL~nKrsrrEN LAL, Sir ABDUL QADIR, Sir 2\IurrA~I:IrAD SrraFI, Raja NAnENDnA NATH, Sir SuNDER SINGH, Majithia, und Khan Bahadar ~IurrAM'JAD HAYAT Qureshi. Honorary Secretaries :-B. L. RALLIA RAM, Esq., anu Pandit HARADATTA SrrARMA. Members of the Executive Committee. Lieutenant-Colonel F. A. BARKER. Di2irict :MagiBtrate, Lahore. Major N. D. Puru, BLS. I{han Buhadur Sheikh A~un ALI. Lala LAJPAT Ru, SAnNI. Syed MorrsiN SnArr. The Reclamation Officer. Sir ABDUL QADIR. W. M. Hu~m, Esq. lilian Bahadur Sardar HABIB ULLAII. J. C. Souza, Esq. Captain DEVINDRA SINon, Otto. Miss CAnoAun, and the Office Bearers. ANNUAL REPORT. 1. General.-The standard of citizenship prevalent _in -a country is a very imp?rtan~ factor in i~s moral an.d mate~al advance. An ideal citizen IS not only mterested m ~eepmg himself " within the law " and performing s.uch fu!'J.CtiOns as . are incumbent upon him as a mer;nber ~f his nation .a~d a resident of his city but he regards It as his duty and pnVIlega to render help to 'others to follo:w his ex~mple. He ~s .not ·content with immunity from eVIl operations of a cnmmal ·Or a law-breaker, but he is on the other hand interested in the law-breaker and is anxious to tum him into a useful citizen. In all modern States the offender against law is not a person to be hated, bra~~ed and barred fror;n reverting to a life of a normal law-ab1dmg man, but he IS a person desiring the attention and sympathy and assistance of those who are in a more happy position. His segregation for a time is not designed so much for revenge or punishment, >as with a view to reform him and to reinstate him to his position in Society. In conformity with the above principle, in many civilised countries pnblic-minded citizens extend a helping hand to those who are released from prisons thns enabling them to rehabilitate themselves by finding a suitable sphere for the ·exercise of their normal ta.Ients. After-care of the prisoner is the duty of everv public spirited citizen with the help and the co-operation of the State. The Pl'isoners' Aid Societies have been fulfilling this duty in many parts of the world, and in India also in several Provinces a start in this direction has been made. The Punjab has at last followed suit and in 1928 the Punjab ~ri~oners' Aid Society was organised and is now meeting m 1ts first Annual General Meeting. • The year under review has been a year of preparation and preliminary organisation. The society has been duly registered and has already begun its career of usefulness and help to the Released Prisoners. 2.. Provisio.nal _Executive Committee.-The Committee aft~r Its formatiOn. m July 1928, ·met 6 times to transact bnsmess of the Society and the attendance of the member~ was. very satisfactory. The interest shown in the work of th; ~omet;y has been considerable, though the real test of the smcenty of the workers and the members o4 the Society will 2 be in the maintenanct' of the interest not only on the present but on an ever-increasing level. 3. 'The work done.-The work that the Executive Com mittee has so far done is as follows :- (1) The issuing of an Appeal Letter to the Public and canvassing for l\Iombers. (2) Formation, Registration and publication of Rn!l's in English and Urdu. (3) Gnrmul;hi Edition of the Rules is under prepara· tion. (4) Propaganda in the interest of the Society. Colonel Barker to \Yhose enthusiasm and genuine sym· pathy the Society owes a great deallectmed in several places and inspired the formation of many district Committees. 4. District Committees.-There are now 27 District Com· mittees. A hst is attached to this report. The nmu~er of member~ who havr paid their subscriptions directly lS 192 while 1,066 members are reported by the District Conuuit!t'~S. This number includes some members who have not yet pmd their subscription. The actual \York of giving aid to the prisoners had alreadv been started in several stations. T\YO members of the L<1hore Committee have visited the Central Jail, Lahore, every week on Saturdays since October 1928. These members intervie\Y the prisoners to be released during the succeeding week, who are infonned of the objects of the Society and the help that it is desirous of rendering to tbe prisoners on their release in enablin" them to live an honour· able life. " Efforts are made to secure suitable employment for th.e plisoners w~o want to take up work through the Com mittee. ;For this purpose some of the members have to visit or w1ite to employers of labour, officials on works, Managers of firms or offices. So far seven ex-prisoners h~ve been helped in securing suitable posts. The ReclamatiOn officer has now ldndly undertahn to assist in findi11g out suitable jobs though this is by no means an easy tnslc Snbsis!ence money for a limited time is given to the released pnsoners who have no friends or means of support. Clothes are also provided in some cases. 'l'ools or small amounts of money are offered to enable certain released convicts to set up a trade or business with which they are 8 familiar. Railway tickets ·and road money are given to the ea:-prisoners in special cases. Arrangements are being made whereby the released prisoners with no home to go to, will be g~ven temporary shelter until some work is found for them. As the Society has got no home of rts own for giving such shelter to the ex-convicts efforts are being made to secure son1e rooms in Poor Houses for this purpose. A small circulating and travelling hbrary containing selected vernacular books of moral teachings and instruc tive stories and biographies was sent to the Superintendent of the Labore Central Jail, to be utilized for the literate prisoners after hi~ approYal. This work of weekly vrsit~ has been done voluntarily by the followmg in addition to the Secretaries; Lala Lajpat Rai Sahni, Khan Bahadur Sheikh Amir Ali, Mr. K. N. Agni hotri, Mr. W. M. Hume, Captain D. S. Otto and Prof. Ganga Ram Kohli. The Ludhiana District Committee reports as follows:- "No less than 20 cases have so far been dealt with by the Society and the good work done by Mr. Sarah Kishen, Advocate, and Kh. Mahmud Shah who have made strenuous efforts to find employment for the convicts after release is worthy of special mention. The Society has been successful in effectively rendering aid to all prisoners who asked for help. Some of the prisoners have however, not availed themselves of the oppor tunities to the fullest extent, as they visited their homes just after their release, with the promise to return, but have not so far appeat·ed. There are present i dozen prisoners who are under the protection of the Society. The Executive Committee has to meet frequently to dispose of these cases." The following statement is taken from the report sub. mit ted bv the Sialkot Prisoners' Aid Society :- "Soon after the formation of the Society, attempts were made to find work for two d1scharged convicts, one of whom was very ~ind!y .PrO vided with work by Messrs. UberOJ, Limited, and the other by Messrs. Philli_Ps and Com pany both at Sialkot. The conviCts took veo/. kindly to the work provided for them and 1t. 4 is a matt._er of great pleasure that noL only are t~1ey l~admg honest flnd_ use~nllives hut. Messrs. l berot have shown then· Willingness to provide w~rk for anot?er convict. ArrangeuJE>lits are bemg made wrtb the_ Superintendent, Lahore, to send a released pmoner to them awl when he r;aclws here it is hoped th•<t it will be posstble to help and guide him so as to train him into an bonrst and llSI'fu) citizen. Another interesting experiment was made in connec tion wtth paying the fines of the convicts who in default of payment of fines would have under gone a sentence of imprisonment. Tl1is W<\S also attended with success ns the diseharaed0 convicts paid their fines "·ithout any call for payment of the sums being made on them. The writing of the Appenls of the poor convicts m the local Jail by D. Chaman Lui, Puri, Pleader, at a considerable inconvenience to him and without any consideration is another line of important work to which the Society can lay claim. The number of surh appeals has been pretty large and the effects of this course have been very appreciable. The convicts have welcomed this new procedure and whenever the sentence has been reduced a sigh of relief has been heard a11d a greater faitll in the syrnpathy of the public with a feeling of thank· fulness for disinterested labour have been re· garded. :Many convicts have been acquitted who but for this help would have remained in Jail." In the Ambala District three released prisoners have been employed as Malis, and further efforts are being made in the direction of finding suitable work for them.