Branded for life: Once jailbirds, now outcasts

HYDERABAD: Prisoners, who come out of jail, struggle to make ends meet as they are forever branded criminals.

Social stigma

serves as a double whammy as former prisoners find the going tough with nobody willing to give them jobs or hire them.


K Bhima, 32, a former convict, used to work as a mechanic in Nizamabad. "I used to earn 10,000 a month and after I came out of jail life became tough. Society refused to accept me and friends became strangers. I could not even get a job in a repair shop after I came back," he rued.

Prison officials aver social stigma on former prisoners is rampant and strong. "Most of them are branded criminals even after they are rehabilitated. Several ex-prisoners contact us, seeking help in getting a job and solving their personal problems," said A Narasimha, inspector general of prisons, while speaking to TOI.

Krishna, 23, who married a minor girl, was booked on rape charges and a POCSO case was filed. " I was into real estate business and after serving my jail term, I drive an auto to earn a living. My neighbours continue to treat me like a criminal," he said.

Former SP in

Cherlapally

Central Prison K Venkateshwar Reddy said 90% of the convicts are not repeat offenders. "Many people who are sent to jail commit the crimes owing to circumstances," he said.

Deputy jailor M Sridhar said property offenders - like theft and burglary case convicts - are hard to rehabilitate. "They go back to committing the same crimes," he added.