'Provisions Of Parole/ Furlough Structured On Humanistic Grounds': Karnataka High Court Partly Allows Murder Convict's Plea

The Karnataka High Court has said the provisions of parole/furlough are structured on humanistic grounds for the reprieve of those lodged in jails for long. The main purpose of releasing a serving convict on parole is to afford him an opportunity to solve his personal & family problems and to enable him to maintain his links with the civil society. Justice Krishna S Dixit, while partly allowing a petition filed by the wife of a murder convict seeking parole leave for attending his daughter's marriage said,"One cannot forget every saint had a past and every sinner has a future; a person is convicted and put behind the bars, does not render him a destitute of all liberty & dignity; humanistic approach needs to be adopted qua the convicts. A convict has to keep in contact with the civil society, although not very regularly, so that his roots there do not dry up when he languishes here; otherwise when he returns from the prison after completing the term, he will be a total stranger and life would prove hard to him." The wife of the accused Suma had approached the court as the representation dated 12.10.2021 to the prison authorities seeking his release on parole for a period of two months for the marriage of his daughter, scheduled to be performed on 7th & 8th of November, 2021, was not considered. The Government opposed the plea saying, "Parole & furlough are not a matter of right; petitioner is convicted for the murder of three persons and therefore whatever arguable right he has, also does not avail to him." The court on going through the facts of the case noted that presently, the convict has been serving sentence since last more than two decades i.e., since February 1999, of course with some parole/furlough. Then it observed, "Ordinarily every Hindu Marriage involves certain rituals such as 'Vivaah Homa' with the participation of the parents; even otherwise when a young daughter is getting married, the presence of her father, mother having died recently, is desirable." Following which the court opined,"The sublime feelings of the spouse & children permeate the prison walls and reach the convict, however strong & unkindly they are built; therefore, this court has to facilitate the presence & participation of the petitioner in the ensuing marriage ceremony; an otherwise stand of the court, runs the risk of being branded as inhuman by the right thinking section of the society, to say the least." The court dismissed the contention of the government counsel opposing the plea saying, "it is not that, petitioner is awarded a capital punishment and therefore he may take a chance to run away from the gallows." Following which the ordered, "The respondents are directed to consider petitioner's representation and release him on parole from the forenoon of 01.11.2021 till the afternoon of 15.11.2021. The respondents shall stipulate strict conditions as are usually stipulated to ensure the return of petitioner to the gaol and that he shall not commit any other offence." Case Title: Suma v. State of Karnataka Case No: Writ Petition No. 18978 of 2021 Date of Order: 26th Day of October, 2021 Appearance: Advocate Kemparaju, for petitioner; Advocate Vinod Kumar, for respondents.Click Here To Read/Download The Order

'Provisions Of Parole/ Furlough Structured On Humanistic Grounds': Karnataka High Court Partly Allows Murder Convict's Plea

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A person convicted and put behind the bars, not rendered destitute of all liberty & dignity, the Court said.

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