The High Court on Tuesday directed the authorities concerned to speed up recruitment to fill 29 vacant posts of doctors in prisons across the country.

A HC bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Mustafizur Rahman passed the order during a hearing.

Petitioner lawyer advocate JR Khan Robin said 112 doctors have been recruited against the demand of 141 in the prisons across the country and the court directed the jail authorities verbally to appoint doctors in the vacant posts soon as possible.

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In 2019, advocate JR Khan Robin filed a petition in the form of public interest litigation attaching news reports on the crisis of doctors in 68 jails across the country.

On June 23, 2019, the High Court issued a rule questioning why the failure to ensure the accommodation and health services for the jail inmates will not be announced illegal and directed the authority to submit a report in this regard.

The jail authorities then submitted report saying that there are 24 doctors in different prisons in the country and sought necessary directive to appoint 117 more doctors in prisons.

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Following the report, the court on January 20, 2020 directed the Director General of the Directorate General of Health Services to appoint the 117 doctors in prison without any delay.

On January 17, the jail authorities in a report informed the court about 29 vacant posts of doctors in country’s prisons.