Former Tihar DG: I Acted Within Prescribed Norms

Today, I am satisfied and happy I am hanging up my boots today, he said.Replying to a question about any incident he remembers while serving as Tihar Jail DG, Baniwal said that he got to know about the shortcomings in prisons during the murder of gangster Tillu Tajpuria.That murder taught me.

I always acted according to my rules, said Director General (Prisons) Sanjay Baniwal on Tuesday while serving the last day at his office here.

Baniwal, a 1989 batch IPS officer, was responding to a PTI question related to the Aam Aadmi Party's allegation on Tihar working under the political pressure and not giving insulin to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who is lodged in the jail in connection with the excise policy linked money laundering case.

They (AAP) did want they want, I acted according to my rules, Baniwal said.

''Insulin was never in question. It was a doctors decision, it was and it will,'' Baniwal said during his retirement ceremony at his office in the Tihar Jail.

Baniwal, an AGMUT cadre officer, retired after 37 years of service on Tuesday. He was posted as Director General of Delhi Prisons, Tihar, since November 4, 2022.

He served as DGP, Chandigarh, between 2018 and 2021.

As Special Commissioner in the Delhi Police, he looked after the units of PCR, Operations, Technology and Special Police Unit for Women and Children (SPUWAC).

While being in the police, he served as the SP in Andaman and Nicobar Island, the DIG in Mizoram and the IG in Arunachal Pradesh.

Baniwal had taken over the charge as DG, Tihar, after the government had removed the then DG Sandeep Goel amid allegations of corruption and controversies surrounding jailed conman Sukesh Chandrashekhar.

He said the time was tough when he joined as the DG, Tihar.

''There was a lot of mistrust in the administration. I had a challenge to set the system in place and I tried my level best to retain that trust. Today, I am satisfied and happy I am hanging up my boots today,'' he said.

Replying to a question about any incident he remembers while serving as Tihar Jail DG, Baniwal said that he got to know about the shortcomings in prisons during the murder of gangster Tillu Tajpuria.

''That murder taught me. I got to know what were our short comings and what were our strength. Soon after that we did a lot of changes in terms of ensuring no such incident in the future,'' he said.

Baniwal further said he has introduced various programmes and reforms in Tihar during his tenure which he hopes will be continued by his successor.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)