CHANDIGARH: The
Punjab and
Haryana high court has made it clear that the case of premature release of a life convict should be considered by the state government in view of the policy that was in force at the time of the conviction. Justice
Jaishree Thakur of the high court passed these orders while disposing of a petition filed by life convict Gurmeet Singh of
Bathinda who had completed around 23 years in jail in a murder and rape case and pleaded for premature release as per the state’s policy.
The Punjab government in this case was pressing that the accused was awarded life imprisonment for heinous crime and the sentence mean imprisonment for rest of the life. Rejecting the state’s arguments, the
HC observed that once the state government has taken a policy decision in regard to premature release of convicts who have been awarded imprisonment for life and, it is bound by its decision.
The HC said that the accused was convicted by the sessions court, Bathinda on October 10, 1996 and the state’s policy pertaining to grant of premature release in force that time was the one announced on July 8, 1991. In his plea before the HC, the petitioner had argued that having undergone more than 23 years of imprisonment, and including remissions, more than 31 years of sentence he would be entitled to premature release as he fulfilled all the conditions as per government instructions issued on July 8, 1991. It was argued that his case was rejected by the government on September 17, 2015 on the ground that he had committed a heinous crime.
