In a major controversy, a constable deployed with Kanda jail in Shimla district in which ISIS suspect Aabib Khan has been lodged, has accused the jail administration of giving free hand to some inmates and allowing them to use Facebook.

The Constable identified as Bhanu Prashar has also uploaded a video of the incident to support his claims. He had accused the Jail administration of letting inmates use mobile phones inside prison.

The constable has further alleged that when he reported the matter to senior officials, he was abused and threatened by them. The Constable has now been suspended by Prisons Department and an inquiry has been ordered into the incident.

Meanwhile, Jail officials has denied any wrongdoings and said the jail inmates were working on website of the Prisons department as they are entrusted with the work after keeping in mind their good behaviour.

The Jail staff, instead, had accused the Constable Bhanu Prashar of indiscipline and had alleged that action has been taken against him for such behaviour in the past too.

Kanda Jail Superintendent, Sher Chand told The Statesman that Bhanu was lying on the issue as his salary had been stopped for not joining duty. “Bhanu Prashar had gone on leave for four days but he didn’t join the duty even after three months due to which his salary was stopped. Though when he couldn’t give sufficient reasons for his absence, he is making such false claims,” he added.

Chand said he had also faced action for indiscipline in Bilaspur Jail and Nahan Jail in the past.

Somesh Goyal, Director General, Prisons Department, HP, told The Statesman that an inquiry has been ordered into the incident and he would be able to comment on the issue once the report is out.

However, he clarified that jail inmate are allowed to work inside prison keeping in mind good conduct and their zeal to reform themselves. “Sometimes, we allow the jail inmates to work on several projects of prison after observing their conduct for over a period, which is not less than five years. These inmates must have been working in the jail as the set arrangement,” he said.