Amendment status not verified — confirm the current text below against the official source.
(1) The prisoners detained in correctional homes shall be classified as follows:— (a) civil prisoners, (b) criminal prisoners, (c) under-trial prisoners, (d) convicted prisoners, (e) habitual offenders, (f) non-habitual offenders (g) political prisoners, (h) detenus, (i) lunatics—criminal and non-criminal. 256 The West Bengal Correctional Services Act, 1992. XXXII of 1992.] (Chapter VIL—Classification of prisoners.—Section 24.) (2) The prisoners referred to in clauses (a) to (h) shall further be classified into male prisoners and female prisoners according to their sex and into Division I prisoners and Division II prisoners in terms of the provisions of section 25. (3) (i) Any person committed to a correctional home by a civil court 5 of 1908. under the provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, or any other law for the time being in force, shall be classified as a civil prisoner. (ii) Any person committed to a correctional home by any court or 45 of 1860. authority for any offence punishable under the Indian Penal Code or any other law for the time being in force or by an order of a court-martial under a writ or order, duly sealed and signed by such court or authority, shall be classified as a criminal prisoner. (iii) Any person committed to a correctional home having been accused of any offence shall, until he is convicted for that offence or any other offence by any court, be classified as under-trial prisoner. (iv) Any other person committed to a correctional home in respect of whom any order of conviction has been made by any competent court and a person committed to the custody of a correctional home in default of payment of fine or furnishing security under any proceeding under secions 107 to 110 of the Indian Penal Code shall be classified as a convicted prisoner. (v) Any prisoner comming within the meaning of clause (0 of section 2 shall be described as a habitual offender. All other prisoners shall be described as non-habitual offenders. (vi) Any person arrested or convicted on a charge of having committed or attempting to commit or aiding or abetting the commission of any political offence, whether or not the act constituting such offence comes within the purview of any offence punishable under the Indian Penal Code or any other law for the time being in force, and any person believed to have been prosecuted out of political animosity or grudge, shall be classified as political prisoner. Explanation.—For the purposes of this clause,— (a) any offence committed or alleged to have been committed in furtherance of any political or democratic movement or any offence arising out of an act done by an individual with an exclusive political objective free from personal greed or motive shall be a political offence. Explanation.—(1) An offence coming within the purview of Chapter VI of the Indian Penal Code shall always be deemed to be a political offence. (2) The provision of a law under which an offender is charged shall not be material. A person charged under section 302 or section 379 or 257 The West Bengal Correctional Services Act, 1992. [West Ben. Act (Chapter VII.—Classification of prisoners.—Section 24.) section 395 or section 411 of the Indian Penal Code may be classified as a political prisoner if his case satisfies the requirement of this clause; (b) any movement or public agitation sponsored or carried on by any political party or any group or association of persons for furtherance of any political ideology or for securing or safeguarding any political right, objective or relief with a view to obtaining common good for the people in general or any section thereof or for the remedy of any injustice of political nature done to any individual shall be interpreted as a political movement; (c) any movement or public agitation sponsored or carried on by any political party or any group or association of persons for securing common good for the people in general or any section thereof or for securing and safeguarding any well- recognised human right, or for undertaking activities in the field of social reform or for ameliorating the living condition of the afflicted or poorer section of the community or for securing reforms or for safeguarding public interest in social, economic, educational and cultural matters, or for securing remedy of any injustice done to any individual or body of individuals in those matters, shall be interpreted as a democratic movement; (d) for the removal of doubts it is hereby declared that trade union activities and collective activities sponsored or carried on for securing justice and well being of the working class and collective activities for safeguarding the interest of tillers of land or for betterment of conditions of their labour and living shall be deemed to be a democratic movement: Provided that a movement or public agitation by any communal, regional, linguistic, religious, racial, sectional or caste group sponsored or cared on against any other like group shall not be deemed to be a political or democratic movement: Porvided further that any movement based on religious, regional, communal, racial or caste consideration or any movement for promoting any interest, other than social or economic interest, by any religious, regional, communal or racial or caste people or any movement for placing impediment or obstruction in the matter of advancement of any section or sections of the people, shall not be treated as a political or democratic movement. 258 The West Bengal Correctional Services Act, 1992. XXXII of 1992.] (Chapter VIL—Classification of prisoners.—Section 25.) (vii) Any person who has been committed to a correctional home by warrant, writ or order issued under any law providing for preventive :detention or any person detained without any opportunity of trial under any law for the time being in force, shall be classified as a detenu. (viii) Any person who has been committed to the custody of a correctional home by a warrant, writ or order made by a court for an alleged offence under any law for the time being in force or for serving a sentence for an offence punishable under any law for the time being in force shall be classified as a criminal lunatic if he— (a) is found to be of unsound mind on the date of his admission into a correctional home; or (b) is found to have developed unsoundness of mind after his admission into a correctional home but before his conviction; (c) is found to have developed unsoundness of mind after his admission into a correctional home and after his conviction: Provided that a person classified as a criminal lunatic under this clause shall cease to be so classified as soon as he is declared by a psychiatrist to have been cured of unsoundness of mind and shall, thereafter, be classified as a criminal prisoner. (ix) Any prisoner confined in a correctional home on grounds of unsoundness of mind, who is not charged with any offence and against whom no criminal case is pending in any court, shall be classified as non-criminal lunatic.