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Dalvinder Singh Jagpal, an Indian citizen incarcerated in the largest maximum-security prison in Havana, the Combinado del Este, since November 2002, reported last Saturday that prison officials have intensified the harassment against him for over a month, with nighttime searches, confiscation of belongings, and destruction of food sent by his daughter from abroad, as reported by CubaNet.
According to their account via phone, from February 21 to March 27, they were isolated in a punitive regime as "reprisal" for their statements to the independent press.
On March 21, at 2:00 AM, Lieutenant Colonel José Andrés de Valle —the chief of building 3— and a guard nicknamed "Rombo" burst into his cell, forced him to undress and squat down, and searched his clothing and belongings.
The next day, at 10:00 PM, the guard Manuel Alejandro, known as "El Jaba'o", repeated the procedure in what the inmate described as documented practices against other inmates of the prison.
In that same report, the inmate accused that his remote control for a television he owned, valued at 15 dollars, was confiscated, a device that —as he explained— foreign prisoners must purchase on their own due to the lack of supplies in the prison.
Jagpal added that on April 9, again in the early hours of the morning, he was subjected to another search in his cell, this time by other officers, who repeated the procedure of stripping him and inspecting all his belongings in what he described as a systematic pattern of harassment.
Among the items he claims were taken from him are disposable razor heads, a deodorant, cleaning products, personal belongings, and medications.
It was also reported that several food items such as powdered milk, sugar, and coffee were opened and scattered on the floor by the officials themselves, resulting in a complete loss.
The prisoner also pointed out that the toilet faucet was removed from his cell, which causes flooding every time the water supply is restored.
Throughout his confinement, the Indian citizen has repeatedly reported being a victim of physical and psychological abuse, as well as the lack of consular assistance and support from the Embassy of India to review his case.
Jagpal, who according to human rights sources suffered from severe hypertension without receiving medication, has been imprisoned for over two decades in conditions that international organizations have classified as inhumane.
According to previous statements, he was sentenced to 10 years in prison "by conviction," without evidence or witnesses, after being linked to a case that occurred in a house where he was staying with others.
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