NEW DELHI: A Delhi court directed Tihar Jail authorities on Wednesday to appear in person to explain how “such a desperate accused person”, an undertrial named Shahnawaz, was kept together in isolation in prison with Christian Michel James, one of the alleged middlemen in the AgustaWestland VVIP helicopter case. The court of special judge Sanjeev Aggarwal sought a status report from the jail authorities on the issue by April 29.
Meanwhile, talking to a few reporters just outside the courtroom on Wednesday, James, who was extradited from the UAE in 2018, said that inmates cut “deals” for “special treatment” inside Tihar. He described his time in prison, now more than six years, as not a waste of time but a “very good experience” despite the jail being a “terrible” and dangerous” place.
However, underlining the threat to his life, he said, “I don’t know exactly how many times, but there were attempts to poison me. The person who tried was surprised that I survived.”
The court also directed the jail superintendent to provide a table fan to James, noting it had not been allowed by the authorities despite its order. “Court already allowed this. He’s still an undertrial (prisoner). Superintendent must provide this fan. He’s from abroad. It’s 42 degrees in Delhi,” the judge said.
In the report on James’s fellow prisoner, undertrial Shahnawaz, Tihar jail officials stated that he had received 41 punishments for his conduct in prison after 2020 in multiple cells at the correctional facility.
The punishments were for disorderly behaviour and possessing prohibited articles, it said. The report also mentioned that Shahnawaz was in Tihar jail cell No 1 from Nov 2018 to Oct 2019, during which no complaint was lodged against him.
This was the period during which James alleged that there were attempts to poison him.
