India’s prison system is changing: Muslim, SC and ST inmate share falls to two-decade low | Mumbai News
A significant shift is occurring within the walls of India’s correctional facilities. The demographic data inside India”s prisons released by the National Crime Records Bureau in its Prison in India 2024 report reveals a consistent decline in the percentage share of Muslims, Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) within the country’s prison system over the last two decades..
While these communities have historically been overrepresented relative to their share in the national population, the latest figures from 2024 show that their proportion among both convicts and undertrials has fallen to its lowest level in more than two decades.
Muslims, who comprise 14.2 per cent of India’s population, accounted for 23.04 per cent of undertrials in 2003. By 2024, their share had declined to 18.81 per cent. Similarly, their representation among convicts fell from 18.91 per cent in 2003 to 15.9 per cent in 2024.
A decade-long analysis of India’s prison population points to a gradual decline in the proportional representation of Muslims in jails, even as the overall number of inmates has risen sharply since 2013.
According to the NCRB’s Prison Statistics India 2024 report, Muslims accounted for 22,145 of the country’s 1,29,608 convicts in 2013, making up 17.08 per cent of the total convict population. By 2024, the total number of convicts had increased to 1,36,138, but the number of Muslim convicts dipped marginally to 21,640, reducing their share to 15.9 per cent.
A similar trend was visible among undertrials — prisoners awaiting the completion of their cases. In 2013, Muslims comprised 57,936 of India’s 2,78,503 undertrials, accounting for 20.8 per cent of the total undertrial population. By 2024, although the number of Muslim undertrials had risen to 69,864, their share fell to 18.81 per cent as the overall undertrial population surged to 3,71,440.
The data suggests that while Muslim inmate numbers have remained stable or grown modestly in absolute terms, their increase has not kept pace with the rapid expansion of India’s prison population over the past decade.
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Muslims make up 14.2 per cent of the country’s population, but concerns have long been raised over their overrepresentation in prisons. At one point, Muslims accounted for nearly 24.72 per cent of the country’s undertrial population.
The issue had earlier triggered political intervention. In 2013, then Union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde had written to state governments urging them to ensure innocent Muslim youth were not wrongly arrested.
The data also highlights significant regional variations. Uttar Pradesh recorded the highest number of Muslim convicts in 2024 at 5,818, followed by Madhya Pradesh with 2,378 and West Bengal with 1,836. Among undertrials, Uttar Pradesh again reported the highest number of Muslim inmates at 16,471, followed by West Bengal at 8,423 and Bihar at 6,685.
A major caveat in analysing the national prison data is the absence of religion-wise undertrial figures from Maharashtra for 2022, 2023 and 2024. Maharashtra, which has one of the country’s largest prison populations, did not provide a religious breakup for its 31,523 undertrials in 2024. Historically, the state has recorded a high number of Muslim undertrials — 6,182 in 2013, the second-highest in the country at the time.
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Among convicts, Jammu and Kashmir recorded the highest proportion of Muslim inmates in 2024, with Muslims accounting for 59.41 per cent of all convicts. West Bengal and Assam followed closely, with Muslims making up over 37 per cent of convicts in both states. Kerala reported a Muslim convict share of 25.66 per cent, while Maharashtra and Delhi recorded shares above 23 per cent.
Among undertrials, Muslims accounted for 68.65 per cent of all inmates in Jammu and Kashmir and over 50 per cent in Assam. West Bengal recorded a Muslim undertrial share of 41.5 per cent, while Kerala, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi also reported significantly high proportions.
Scheduled Castes
Scheduled Castes, who constitute 16.6 per cent of India’s population, accounted for 22.37 per cent of undertrials in 2003. By 2024, their share had fallen sharply to 16.62 per cent nearly equal to their share in the general population. Their representation among convicts also declined from 20.72 per cent in 2003 to 18.42 per cent in 2024.
For nearly a decade, the SC share in prisons remained consistently high and even peaked in 2013, when SC convicts accounted for 22.47 per cent of all convicts nationally. However, the last decade has seen a sharp decline in their prison representation.
Scheduled Tribes
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Scheduled Tribes, who make up 8.6 per cent of India’s population, also saw a steady decline in prison representation over the last two decades.
STs accounted for 14.25 per cent of undertrials in 2003, a figure that fell to 9.19 per cent in 2024. Among convicts, their share declined from 15.95 per cent in 2003 to 12.29 per cent in 2024.
Unlike SCs, whose prison representation remained high for nearly a decade before declining, the representation of STs has shown a more gradual but consistent downward trend over the years. By 2013, the share of ST undertrials and convicts had already fallen to around 11 per cent nationally.
