Central Jail
by
Dhanraj P
Copyright@2010 Dhanraj P
It stood before us as an epitome of darkness and gloom.
We were never able to shrug off the uneasy feeling it created in our lives. The dark stone wall which stood meters high and the huge front door which had a wicket entrance, lived in our mind throughout, irrespective of the age we reached and the position we attained. After all, we were-its neighbors.
It harbored the state’s most dreaded criminals, small time thieves and innocent lives who were just destined to suffer in its interiors. It sent chills through our spines, by just allowing that fact to seep into our mind- it contains a hang room…
Kannur Central jail is in fact an important landmark and is an inevitable element of our address, because we lived next to the it.
Any one who passes through NH-17, could get a neat glimpse of it with all its past black glory. The only streak of light which heralds the prevailing goodness, is the unforgettable smile on the statue of Bapuji, erected just in the front of main gate. Bapu smiled throughout the year under the white cement umbrella. We salute the sculpter who made the statue and that great unknown person who took the initiative to install it there.
Kannur central jail is one among the three central jails in Kerala and the largest. The extra large compound is surrounded by huge and lengthy stone walls. It was constructed during the British rule in Malabar. The arrangements show how mean they were. They sentenced people to death for a small or no reason. Hence the structure remained a symbol of cruelty over decades, even after the independence.
My childhood memories gets easily woven around the central jail because the barren area next to its the compound wall which stretched infinitely at back side, was our playground. Since it was government land, it remained barren. (After many years, government press and Kannur FM and Doordashan kendra were built in this compound) We played football, hide and seek etc. thinking that we are the owners of the place. Cashew trees and mango trees grew along with endless and useless vegetation across the place, with abundance. We climbed trees, plucked mangoes and cashew fruits and ate them, then and there. Exploring newer landscapes and play areas in that compound, became one among the many activities we conducted there. During the Onam season, the place will be blossomed fully with nameless flowers. We plucked and used it for decorating our house entrances with pookkalams.
Many of my relatives got jobs as wardens in central jail. Their quarters were situated in front of the jail, across the national highway-17. The jail administration was directly under IG (prisons).The local representative was the Jail superintendent. His quarters in front of the jail, was a structure which we looked at with awe. The jail superintendent was a prominent figure in the social functions, in and around the place. We thought him as the most influential person in the world.
Through our above referred relatives, we came to know what a jail is about. The wardens brought out batches of convicts who wore only a short dhoti and a crude shirt/banyan and they toiled endlessly outside the compound. They planted trees, created maidans, washed clothes in the houses of the wardens and kept their family happy. Inside the jail, they did carpentry, tailoring and made all sorts of handicrafts for which they were paid a meager sum. That sum would be deposited and given to them only at the time of their release. Some of them used it to smuggle beedis inside. I still remember of having a showpiece at home, which is a glass bottle with a ship assembled inside by one of the prisoners.
The jail, its surroundings, the prisoners working in the premises and the stadium in which annual jail sports meet was conducted—everything became our premises also. We played football in the stadium in the evenings and jogged there in the cold mornings. We smiled back to Bapuji while traversing in our bicycles, to our tutorial college and back. We shuddered at the sight of the sentry who held a heavy rifle and stood upright in front of the entrance. Creepy thoughts entered into our mind whenever we walked during the night in front of the entrance and the dark walls.
Once, we got an opportunity to visit its inside. Old style buildings with beautiful gardens fenced by pink and white bougainvilleas, some what changed our concept of the jail. We were shown the work area, where prisoners did all sorts skilled work including carpentry, handloom, embroidery, etc. There was a bostal school where juvenile prisoners are kept and taught. Adjacent to that was the women’s prison. We stood openmouthed when we saw the huge kitchen and enormous size utensils. The cooking was done by the selected prisoners. We learnt that meat is served twice a week.
But when we went to see confinement cells and the hang room, fear came back again. The hang room had this beam on which rope and the noose is hung, the lever which felled the wooden plank on the floor downwards, the cellar to which the dead body is dropped and checked by the doctor who confirms death. From the cellar, the body is taken out and handed over to the relatives who waited outside. This outlet leads to the compound outside the wall also.
Our elders told us—the bodies of the hanged prisoners were thrown over the wall into the compound outside during the British rule. Their spirits still wander in the premises. Hence, they advised us not to play there. But, as kids usually do, we did not pay heed to their advises. We still roamed around- if the spirits existed-then, with them.
My closest friend Ramesh stayed nearer to the jail compound, than me. His family had migrated from Rajmundri in Andrapradesh to Kerala in search of job. Since he was born in Kannur, he spoke fluent Malayalam. We were peers and shared a very hearty friendship. One thing that differentiated both of us with respect to personality traits was that he was bold and I was timid. He was my main team mate during the explorations conducted by us in the jail compound.
During that time, a notorious criminal called Ripper Chandran was sentenced for hanging till death by the court. He was brought to Kannur central jail. He was a Psycho maniac who visited houses in the night and killed people by striking hammer on their heads. He had committed several murders like this. Hence he got the nick name ripper.
Death execution was not done at the jail for a very long time. Hence the jail authorities were also panicked. They have to find an executer who made the rope and noose specially for it. There were special people for the job who has inherited it through generations, since British era.
When the date neared, local people sensed a creepy fear in the air. The execution was supposed to be done early in the morning. First, the magistrate will read the verdict by the court and will ask the convict if he has anything to say. Then the executer will cover the convict’s head with a black cloth and walk him to the position. The noose is put around his neck. The magistrate will see his watch and orders the execution. The lever is pulled by the executer and plank on which the convict is standing will open down on hinges and the body will be hanged. After the stipulated time, the rope is released and body is dropped down.
During our exploration three days before the execution, we located the outlet in the wall where the body will be taken out. I simply asked, is there anyone daring enough to see the body of ripper being taken out early in the morning. Nobody vouched. Suddenly Ramesh said he is ready. We tried to dissuade him. But Ramesh was adamant and told us not to disclose this to any body.
The day came and there was tension in the air. Elders warned all of us not to go anywhere near the compound, even during the day. Next day early morning, whole of my house hold awoke hearing wails coming from Ramesh’s house. I put my shirt and ran to his house. Ramesh sat on the ground with head hung between his knees. He was tearing his hair and making unusual loud sounds. His mother wailed and lamented in telugu. His father and sister stood at the door frame dumbstruck.
I ran and held
Ramesh. He shrugged me off and shouted in fear
“No..! Don’t come near me. Nooo…!
Then he stood and ran inside. He went to the bed room and fell on the bed, face down. I didn’t know what to do.
Ramesh was admitted to the hospital and sedatives were given. Whenever he regained his senses, he tried to break loose of his bounds and shouted in fear with his eyes fixed in the corner of the room.
“Don’t come near me!. No.. !” He shouted as if he is seeing something scary in that corner.
Doctor told us Ramesh has seen something scary or shocking. He said not to worry and he will be OK in days. I was afraid to disclose about his venture to the jail compound.
After that incident Ramesh’s family shifted back to their native place in Andhra and we didn’t have any communications for a long time.
Last year I got a phone call and was surprised that it was him. He didn’t speak much. He told me that he coming to meet me.
They-Ramesh, his wife Meenakshi and his twin kids Madhavi and sharan- visited us. We were overjoyed and spent whole day remembering the days we spend together. His Malayalam accent has considerably changed. His wife spoke in English and told me- he is still afraid of the dark.