Muzaffarpur, Jan. 6: Groups of prisoners and undertrials lodged in Shahid Khudiram Bose Central Jail at Muzaffarpur have resorted to extortion activities behind the bars.

A group of influential jailbirds have started preying on new prisoners and undertrials from affluent families. They force the new jailbirds to get money from their visitors and hand over the amount to them.

Earlier, acting on the orders of deputy inspector-general of police (Tirhut) Bacchu Singh Meena, the district police had successfully cracked down on prisoners and undertrials demanding extortion money from the town’s traders.

The district police also shifted several hardened criminals to Bhagalpur Central Jail from here. Former JD(U) MLA Vijay Kumar Shukla alias Munna Shukla, whose name figured in the transfer list prepared by jail superintendent Vishwanath Prasad, senior superintendent of police Rajesh Kumar and district magistrate (DM) Santosh Kumar Mall, the state government deleted it from the list at an eleventh hour.

Mall told The Telegraph: “Extortion activities by a section of influential prisoners and undertrials from well-off jailbirds continue unabated but are restricted within the prison wall.”

The DM said A.K. Pandey, a retired teacher, came to his janata darbar with a complaint that influential prisoners extort money from his son, Dipendra Pandey, presently behind bars for committing minor offence.

“The teacher’s son was threatened with dire consequences if he failed to arrange payment of money to members of a gang outside the jail,” the DM said.

Mall said he had pulled up all errant prisoners and the undertrials and had asked the jailers and the jail superintendent to clip their wings or get ready to face drastic departmental action.

The DM said: “I have decided to lodge FIRs against prisoners and undertrials caught intimidating new and affluent prisoners.”

The DM added that he interacted with several prisoners and undertrials during inspecting the jail and all of them had expressed satisfaction over the food served to them.

Mall said while reviewing the security around the prison walls, he had decided to increase the number of police personnel and depute them at vulnerable sites inside and outside the jail.