Agartala, May 27, 2024: In a daring escape, an inmate from Tripura’s Bishalgarh Central Correctional Facility identified as Pradeep Sarkar managed to flee from the medicine ward of GB Hospital on Tuesday afternoon. Sarkar is a resident of the Maiganga area in Teliamura sub-division under Khowai district, had been receiving treatment at the hospital for the past few days.

According to a jail police officer on guard, the incident took place on Tuesday at approximately 2:30 PM. The officer recounted that Sarkar had requested to use the toilet, a routine request that led to an unexpected turn of events. “He said he needed to go for natural work,” the officer explained. “I escorted him to the toilet and settled the water for him.”

However, what followed exposed a critical lapse in security. The officer admitted that he also entered another toilet nearby, leaving Sarkar momentarily unsupervised. Seizing the opportunity, Sarkar made his escape through a broken window. “When I came out, he was gone,” the officer said, visibly distressed.

The alarm was raised immediately, prompting a frantic search within and around the hospital premises. Police personnel were mobilized, and senior officials from Bishalgarh Central Correctional Facility, including the Inspector General rushed to the scene. Despite extensive efforts, Sarkar remained elusive.

Authorities believe that the escape was facilitated by insufficient police personnel on guard duty. “This kind of negligence has become disturbingly frequent,” a senior correctional officer admitted, highlighting a pattern of security failures at the facility in recent months.

Local residents and officials alike have voiced their concerns over the repeated incidents of inmate escapes. “It’s a clear indication of extreme negligence,” one resident remarked. “It’s unacceptable that such lapses continue to happen.”

The incident has sparked a debate on the adequacy of security measures at Bishalgarh Central Correctional Facility. Critics argue that assigning a single police officer to guard inmates under treatment is grossly insufficient, calling for an urgent review of current protocols and an increase in security personnel.

As the search for Pradeep Sarkar continues, the authorities are under pressure to not only recapture the escaped inmate but also to implement stricter security measures to prevent such incidents in the future.