JAILHOUSE ROCK SYMPTOM OF DEEPER SYSTEMIC ROT

BENGALURU’S ‘jailhouse rock’ videos have kicked up a brouhaha.

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Even in the grim environs of the city’s central prison, inmates were filmed partying with liquor, music, and good food; some were using smartphones. Among them were a convicted serial rapist and a terror suspect. A few months earlier, videos had emerged of Sandalwood star Darshan Thogudeepa, accused of murdering his fan Renukaswamy, using a mobile phone while enjoying a cigarette and tea in the jail garden. In October 2024, convicts in another Karnataka jail were snapped making videocalls, posing for selfies, and smoking marijuana. Stung by criticism over the latest videos, the government transferred the top jail official and suspended two others. A high-level probe is on to identify who shot the videos, and how m