With photos of prisoners at the Central Jail here using smartphones and enjoying choicest food items, going viral, authorities Friday launched a probe and are questioning officials and inmates.
Officials said the photos were retrieved from a mobilephone seized from a prisoner during a search at the Puzhal Central Jail in which six other handsets were seized on September 3.
The images found in a mobile show prisoners taking 'selfies' with other inmates, sporting sunglasses and wearing branded shoes.
One prisoner is seen standing with a badminton racquet.
An inmate could also be seen reclining on a cot in a cosy looking cell with a television.
The prisoners in the photographs were mostly narcotic offenders and they had easy access to items like induction stove and juicers.
"We (prison officials) are probing it, we have also filed a complaint with police, and an FIR has been registered and they are probing the matter as well," a senior prison official told PTI.
Referring to the pictures, the official said "these are at least six months old..but for the mobile phones, things like a television, cot, mattress, or table are allowed for A-class prisoners, these are legal."
On claims being made in a section of media that calls were made from seized mobile phones to Gulf countries, Malaysia and Bangladesh, another jail official said:"we have handed over the mobile phones to the cybercrime police and they are seized of the matter. We are not sure how the pictures got leaked."
On the food items, he said, "it was taken during Ramzan, on such occasions prisoners are allowed to prepare food for themselves by using ingredients supplied by us."
Disclaimer: No Business Standard Journalist was involved in creation of this content