Warden caught with cigarettes and narcotics hidden in undergarments while entering Bengaluru Central Prison.
BOOM BEHIND BARS
Bengaluru
A staff member at Bengaluru’s Parappana Agrahara Central Prison has been arrested for attempting to sneak banned items, hidden inside his undergarments, into the high-security facility.
Rahul Patil, a warden at the central jail, was intercepted at the main gate after security personnel from the Karnataka State Industrial Security Force (KSISF) noticed something amiss.
The door frame metal detector reportedly went off multiple times, prompting a thorough frisking. During the search, guards found two cigarette packets and around 60 grams of a thin, paper-like narcotic substance allegedly concealed on his person.
Prison Superintendent Paramesh, who lodged the police complaint, ordered Patil’s immediate suspension following the discovery.
The Parappana Agrahara police have booked the warden under provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985, as well as the Karnataka Prisons Act, 1963.
The incident comes at a time when the police department is already reeling from several recent cases involving misconduct by its own personnel. The embarrassment has led State Police Chief MA Saleem to issue yet another circular, his second in two months, spelling out stricter guidelines to curb such breaches within the force.
Officials revealed that Patil joined the Department of Prisons and Correctional Services in 2018. He served at the Belagavi Central Prison for years before being transferred to Parappana Agrahara in June 2025. Ironically, less than half a year into his Bengaluru posting, he now finds himself behind bars in the very prison where he once worked, awaiting bail like any other accused.
Senior officers privately admitted that contraband smuggling inside jails remains a persistent issue, with several staff members caught in similar offences in the past.
Investigators are now looking into whether Patil was merely a courier or part of a wider supply chain within the prison ecosystem, and who the intended recipients of the seized items were.
