Unnao jail
Unnao jail viral videoscreenshot

Videos of two inmates at Unnao district jail in Uttar Pradesh holding firearms and drinking alcohol have been widely circulated on social media platforms. After the videos went viral, security inside the prison is being questioned.

Two inmates of the prison, identified as Gaurav Pratap Singh alias Ankur and Amrish Rawat, can be seen openly challenging the government saying that they will freely continue to do whatever they want no matter where they are sent.

In one of the videos, Ankur claims that no matter whichever jail they are sent, they can convert it into their office. He said that he was transferred from Meerut jail to Unnao jail by the Yogi government. "Yogi sarkar mera na Meerut jail mein kuchh bigaad paaya, aur na Unnao mein bigaad payega (Yogi government couldn't do anything to him while he was in Meerut nor could they do anything while he is in Unnao)."

The video also shows a prisoner claiming that he can eliminate anyone sitting inside the prison. Another video shows the inmates having a small party inside the jail cell with one of the jailbirds asking another to fix him a drink.

However, the prison officials have denied that the inmates are carrying real arms inside the prison. They claimed that Ankur was an excellent painter and made the gun model out of clay and painted it to look realistic. But they could not deny the fact that cellular phones were used by the inmates.

The superintendent of Unnao district Jail, AK Singh, said they have informed the senior officials about the video and assured strict action against the guilty.

"We have come across the viral videos and apprised the senior officers of the same. It looks as if these videos, which going by the clothes of inmates, seem to be shot in winter in connivance with some jail staff, who had provided them arms and mobile phones. We are in the process of initiating strict action against the culprits," reports TOI.

The prison officials also suspect that the video was apparently shot 3-4 months back as they had confiscated a mobile phone from the prison compound during a surprise check. They reckon the video was shot using the same mobile.

According to the reports, four prison officials had alleged involvement in the issue. The accused were two head wardens, Mata Prasad and Hemraj, and two ward boys Awadesh Sahu and Saleem Khan.