PROTESTERS have accused the Ministry of Justice of failing to protect a prisoner from racist violence while he has been held in indefinite segregation for 13 years.

Supporters of Kevan Thakrar, who has spent most of his life sentence in complete isolation, held a rally outside the ministry’s London headquarters today.

The 36-year-old Muslim was convicted of murder and attempted murder on a joint enterprise basis in 2008.

He is awaiting a High Court decision after claiming in April that his solitary confinement is unlawful and has made him suicidal.

Mr Tharkar said: “The brutality inflicted upon the prisoners within solitary causes the majority of people to develop mental illness…

“I am constantly anxious, hypervigilant, lethargic and feeling myself deteriorating physically and mentally.”
 
His conviction resulted from a trial “riddled with injustice” and he has been held in solitary because he defended himself against a racist attack by guards, his supporters said.

Speaking after the demonstration, supporter Sam Weinstein told the Morning Star: “Kevan himself called in while we were there to say that they were going to allow him to associate with another person, which we consider to be a great victory.”

Mr Weinstein said that the details of the future companion were not clear, but that when Mr Tharkar announced the news, “we obviously cheered and we were shouting: ‘Free Kevan, end solitary confinement now’.”

Mr Tharkar’s mother Jean Tharkar the family is proud of him for “resisting the torture of solitary confinement and defended others.” 

His High Court challenge followed a court ruling last November that the Ministry of Justice has violated his human rights and failed to protect him from decades of “racist and religiously motivated” violence, his supporters said.

A spokesman for the group added the use of solitary confinement “is widespread in Britain and disproportionately targeted against people of colour, with 50 per cent of prisoners in segregated punishment units being Muslim, despite being only 4 per cent of the general population.”

Prison Officers Association general secretary Steve Gillan said that it is legitimate to hold someone in solitary if they are disruptive or violent to other prisoners or pose a danger to prison officers. 

“I don’t believe that any prison officers have been racist towards [Mr Tharkar], because if he claimed that, it would be investigated, and I’m not aware of any ongoing investigation [regarding ] this individual,” he told the Star.

The ministry has been contacted for comment.