Allahabad HC allows prayer for prisoner during Ramadan

The Allahabad High Court has ordered the superintendent of Etawah central jail to allow a high-security prisoner to pray five times a day during Ramadan. The court also stated that the prisoner should be allowed to keep a copy of the Quran. This decision came after a writ petition was filed by Uzma Abid, the prisoner’s wife. She claimed that her husband was not being allowed to pray according to his religious practices and that authorities had taken away his Quran. The inmate is serving a life sentence for a murder committed in 2005. A bench of Justices Ashwani Kumar Mishra and Nand Prabha Shukla heard the case. They acknowledged the need for routine security measures in the jail but emphasized the importance of respecting the prisoner’s religious rights during Ramadan. The state’s counsel assured the court that the jail would look into the concerns raised by Uzma Abid. Following this, the court issued its directive to ensure that the prisoner’s religious practices are respected. The ruling was made on March 17 and has since been enforced.