Supreme Court Directs All States, UTs To Promptly Convey Rejection Of Remission Plea To Convicts

The Supreme Court recently directed all states and union territories to inform convicts of any rejection of applications for permanent remission within one week and forward copies of these rejection orders to the respective District Legal Services Authorities to ensure that appropriate steps are taken to provide legal aid to affected convicts.“(iii) All the States shall ensure that orders of rejection of applications for grant of permanent remission are communicated to the concerned convicts. The orders of rejection shall also be forwarded to the concerned District Legal Services Authorities to enable them to take appropriate steps for rendering legal aid to the concerned convicts; (iv) We make it clear that the States shall ensure that the rejection orders are communicated in terms of the above directions within a period of one week from the date of passing of the rejection orders”, the Court held.A bench of Justice Abhay S Oka and Augustine George Masih passed several directions to all state governments and union territories regarding compliance with remission policies for prisoners –States must make copies of their remission policies available in all prisons and upload them, along with English translations, to government websites. Jail authorities are responsible for informing eligible prisoners about these policies.Any updates or modifications to remission policies must also be made accessible in prisons and uploaded to the relevant websites promptly.Rejection orders for remission applications must be communicated to prisoners within one week of issuance. Copies of these orders should also be sent to the District Legal Services Authorities to facilitate legal aid.If rejection orders lack detailed reasons, states are directed to provide reasons recorded by the Sentence Review Board or equivalent authorities along with the orders.The Court clarified that states should not delay remission applications due to pending appeals by prisoners. However, applications may be paused if the state has appealed for enhanced sentencing or acquittal.States are to follow the Supreme Court's recent decision in Mafabhai Motibhai Sagar v. State of Gujarat, ensuring that conditions for remission are tailored to each case rather than imposing stereotypical conditions.The Court also said that it will consider whether states must provide reasons for rejection of remission, review eligibility without convict applications, and set further general directions. “For considering the issues which are flagged earlier, namely (i) requirement of recording reasons for rejection of the applications for grant of permanent remission; (ii) whether the State Governments are bound to consider the applications of the eligible convicts for grant of permanent remission in terms of their policies, even if the convicts make no such application; (iii) whether any further directions applicable to all the States are required to be issued; and (iv) the conditions which can be imposed while granting permanent remission. The aforesaid four aspects shall be considered on 3rd December, 2024.”The Court has earlier passed directions to avoid delay in the release of prisoners who have secured bail orders and that the bail conditions imposed by the Courts must be reasonable.The Court also examined compliance by various states to its directions regarding the implementation of its directions for the premature release of life convicts. The Court's directions cover the entire process, from identifying eligible life convicts to finalizing release orders by state governments.Tamil NaduThe court observed that the State of Tamil Nadu has not reviewed the majority of cases for eligible convicts, failing to meet deadlines set in the court's July 2021 order. A note from Amicus Curiae Liz Mathew highlighted issues, including the lack of clear reasoning in rejected cases for remission. The court directed Tamil Nadu to decide on all pending cases within two months, ensure DLSAs provide legal aid to prisoners whose remission applications were denied, and immediately communicate orders of rejection to affected convicts. District Collectors, Probation Officers, and other relevant officials should adhere to timelines established in the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) Standard Operating Procedures (SOP), submitting reports within the next month, the Court held.ManipurThe Supreme Court emphasized the need for Manipur to reconstitute its Medical Board with psychiatrists and psychologists to review the mental health status of five prisoners allegedly of unsound mind who are eligible for remission. The State Government was directed to complete this exercise within a month and submit its report directly to the Amicus Curiae. The court also ordered the Ministry of Home Affairs to provide required information to Manipur by mid-November to ensure compliance with past orders. Further, the Manipur State Legal Services Authority must direct DLSAs to contact the families of the five ...

Supreme Court Directs All States, UTs To Promptly Convey Rejection Of Remission Plea To Convicts

Amisha Shrivastava

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