Prisoners attack jailer, guards in central jail

NAGPUR: Group clashes erupted in Nagpur central jail’s ‘Chhoti gol’ barracks on Friday morning. The prisoners turned on a jailer, a constable on guard duty, and another cop in-charge of the barracks after they intervened to separate the warring groups. Some 14 inmates were booked following the riots that broke out at 8.30 am. Two cops were hurt in the attack.
Central jail authorities were thrown into tizzy by the clashing inmates in the convict yard, also known as Chhoti gol. Amarsingh Thakur, his younger brother Prem and Rakesh Kamble, all convicted under Maharashtra Control of Organized Crime had an ongoing rivalry with rival gang of Raju Dubey, Sanjay Gajbhiye, Suraj Sarote, Anup Sharma, Sudhakar Ramteke, Sanu Khan (Siddiqui) and Munna Tiwari.
The simmering enmity snowballed into a violent fight as the inmates started hurling stones at each other and
started attacking with makeshift weapons. The jail guards, taken aback at the sudden outbreak of violence, had a harrowing time trying to separate the rivals who were in a murderous mood.
Sources in the jail said that Thakur and his accomplices had assembled iron rods, pieces of stones, tiles and other sharp materials to prepare weapons. The Thakurs had planned an attack on Dubey’s gang. Shockingly, the Thakurs had even wrenched out an iron pipe from a bathroom to use it as a rod. The jail authorities seized the weapons following a search after the clash.
Jail guard Ganesh Gaikwad was hit when one of the prisoners attacked him after he rushed to cool the tempers. Circle incharge Eknath Gaikwad, who then rushed to the barracks to intervene, was struck on his left shoulder and left leg by Amarsingh.
Sources said that jailer PS Lomte, who then arrived on the scene, was lucky to escape unhurt as Amarsingh allegedly started targeting him with a sharp weapon. The officer had to desperately jump and duck several times as Amarsingh repeatedly attempted to stab him.
The attack on the jail personnel spread panic in the prison. More personnel rushed to rescue the ones
trapped in the riot and ran the risk of getting injured. The attackers vented their ire on the approaching personnel. However, a bigger numbers of jail personnel soon overpowered the rioters.
Meanwhile, Dubey tried to lock himself inside the jailer’s office in the barracks. The Thakurs tried to drag him out but could not do it. Later. The Thakurs ransacked the jailer’s chamber and damaged the furniture. Police also booked Manjit Rathod, Pramod Gajbhiye, Satish Wankhede and Sachin Manerao for provoking the parties during group clash.
Dhantoli police have charged the accused with rioting, causing damage, injury, assault on the public servant and other offences under Indian Penal Code. Jail superintendent WV Burkule said that the prime
accused named in the case will be transferred to Amravati and Akola jails.
"The culprits named in the case already have dubious records. The situation is under control as we have taken stringent measures and beefed up security," said Burkule.
This is the third major incident in the prison in the past couple of months. Earlier, the prison was rocked by a murder and an attempt to murder. In the latest incident, some prisoners and jail personnel suffered minor injuries.