Foreword;

Preface;

1. Introduction: The Prisoners Paradise;

2. Sunlight on a Broken Column;

3. Jail, the gateway to freedom;

4. The Karachi Trial;

5. Calcuttas Maulana: Colonialism on Trial;

6. Poets in Prisons;

7.Long Walk to Freedom;

8. Sunlight and Shadow in Prison;

9. The Vessel will sink when the load of sin is great;

10. Thy Flag will be laid in the dust: The Nehrus in Prison;

11.Crafting History in a Cell;

12. Conclusion: The Price of Freedom;

Appendix I: Aseer-e Zindan: Poems from Prison;

Appendix II: Tables; Index; About the Author

This text examines the history of prison and prisoners in colonial India. Based on substantial archival research, it presents the conditions of the prisoners, their vision for the freedom movement and the various aspects of prisons in the subcontinent.