A fresh report on Bangladesh's prison system has exposed stark class-based discrimination across the country's 72 correctional facilities, revealing that wealth and political connections determine whether incarceration means comfortable living or profound suffering. The findings, cited by international outlet Pressenza and drawing on human rights activists and prison experts, paint a damning picture of a system that operates under reformist slogans while entrenching inequality behind bars.

Overcrowding Crisis Falls on the Poor

According to the report, Bangladesh's prisons have an official capacity of 42,887 inmates, yet the actual prison population has surged past 82,000 — nearly double the structural limit. Critically, this overcrowding is not experienced equally. Ordinary and impoverished prisoners are forced to endure severe congestion, with hundreds reportedly lacking even minimal sleeping space and spending sleepless nights in packed cells. Affluent inmates, by contrast, reportedly secure accommodation in separate, quiet, and comfortable blocks.

Money as the Primary Currency Inside Prisons

Investigations cited in the report indicate that money has become the dominant force governing life inside Bangladeshi prisons. Wealthy inmates are said to spend hundreds of thousands of Bangladeshi Taka monthly to upgrade their conditions. Privileges reportedly available through financial clout include special meals, private accommodation, premium medical care, and regular communication with the outside world. Inmates with chronic illnesses, according to the report, even enjoy exclusive facilities such as refrigerators for storing insulin. For particularly influential individuals, hospital prison cells have reportedly been converted into what the report describes as 'centres of leisurely living.'

Operation Devil Hunt and Rising Prison Populations

The report situates the current crisis within a specific political moment. Ahead of Bangladesh's 13th National Parliamentary Election, a nationwide crackdown titled 'Operation Devil Hunt Phase 2' — conducted jointly by law enforcement agencies and military personnel — led to a surge in daily arrests. Individuals implicated in various cases and criminal activities were sent to correctional facilities in large numbers, further straining an already overburdened system.

The Gap Between Slogan and Reality

Although Bangladesh's 72 prisons officially operate under the reformist motto 'not a jail, but a correction centre', the report argues the ground reality diverges sharply from this ideal. Human rights activists and prison experts cited in the findings assert that correctional facilities should function as 'controlled, rigorous, and egalitarian spaces of rehabilitation.' Instead, Bangladeshi prisons are reportedly shaped by 'personal connections, political identity, and financial leverage' rather than institutional rules.

Call for Systemic Reform

The report concludes with a sharp critique, stating that 'subjecting prisoners to such class discrimination and degrading treatment under the guise of punishment or rehabilitation cannot be the benchmark of a civilised society.' It calls dismantling corruption and the abuse of power — and establishing equal human dignity for all inmates regardless of wealth or status — an 'urgent necessity' if Bangladesh's prison system is to genuinely transform into a network of correction centres. Human rights observers are expected to press the interim administration for a formal response to the findings.