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Grant of Parole

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 10-May-2024

Source: Delhi High Court

Why in News?

Recently, the Delhi High Court has held that the convict is not entitled to grant of parole, on grounds of procreation or maintaining conjugal relationships with his live-in partner, when he already has a legally wedded wife and children born out of that wedlock.

  • The aforesaid observation was made in the matter of Sonu Sonkar v. The Lt Governor, Delhi & Ors.

What was the Background of Sonu Sonkar v. The Lt Governor, Delhi & Ors. Case?

  • In this case, the petitioner, who is presently confined in Tihar Jail, Delhi, was convicted under Sections 302/34 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (IPC) vide judgment dated 15th November 2011 passed by the learned Trial Court and was sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for life and payment of fine of Rs. 5,000/-.
  • The petitioner has remained in judicial custody for about 16 years 10 months, excluding remission of about 02 years and 09 months.
  • He was married to Ms. T on 10th January 2021, and has completed three years of marriage.
  • The petitioner has not been able to consummate his marriage to his wife Ms. T, since the petitioner herein was in judicial custody.
  • Ms. T had applied for the release of the present petitioner on parole on this ground itself before the jail authorities on 02nd January 2024.
  • The order dated 05th March 2024 passed by the respondent, by virtue of which the application filed on behalf of the petitioner seeking parole was rejected.
  • Thereafter, a writ petition was filed by the petitioner before the Delhi High Court for setting aside the order dated 05th March 2024.
  • It was argued on behalf of the respondent that the present petition has been filed on false and frivolous grounds as Ms. T is not the wife of the petitioner. It is further stated that as per the Status Report, the petitioner is already married to one Ms. A and had three children with her.
  • Dismissing the petition, the High Court does not find it a fit case for grant of parole to the present petitioner.

What were the Court’s Observations?

  • Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma observed that the convict is not entitled to grant of parole, on grounds of procreation or maintaining conjugal relationships with his live-in partner, when he already has a legally wedded wife and children born out of that wedlock.
  • It was also observed that granting parole on the grounds to have a child or to maintain conjugal relationships with a live-in partner, where the convict already has a legally wedded wife and children born out of that wedlock, would set a harmful precedent.
  • It was further stated that the law in India as well as the Delhi Prison Rules, 2018 do not permit grant of parole on the ground of maintaining conjugal relationships, that too with live-in partners.

What are the Legal Provisions in Relation to Parole?

Parole System in India:

Introduction
    • The word parole is derived from the French phrase “je donne ma parole”, which means I give my word.
    • Parole is defined as a conditional release of a prisoner, generally under supervision of a parole officer, who has served part of the term for which he was sentenced to prison.

Objectives
    • Parole serves as a motivator for prison inmates to change their ways.
    • It ensures that the prisoners’ family relationships are as intact as possible.
    • It assists the offenders in gradually assimilating into society and adapting to its folds.

Types

Custody Parole:

    • It is provided in emergency situations.
    • Except for foreigners and those serving death sentences, all convicted persons may be eligible for this parole for 14 days for reasons such as the death or marriage of a family member.

Regular Parole:

    • Offenders who have served at least one year in prison are eligible for regular parole for a maximum of one month.
    • It is allotted on certain grounds like marriage, accident, death, illness in a family or delivery of child etc.

Parole Laws
    • The grant of Parole in India is administered by the rules made under the Prison Act, 1894 and Prisoner Act, 1900.
    • Each State in India has its own parole rules which differ slightly from one another.

Eligibility Criteria
    • A convict must have served at least 1 year in jail, excluding any time spent in remission.
    • His behavior had to be uniformly good.
    • The criminal should not have committed any crimes/ broken any of the terms and restrictions.
    • A minimum of 6 months should have passed since the previous parole was terminated.

Procedure
    • A convict seeks parole and files a petition.
    • Jail authority collects the report including the case history, behavior in the prison, medical report, etc.
    • The report is sent to the Deputy Secretary, Home (General), State Government who decides on the application.
    • In some States, it is sent to the Inspector General of the Prison.
    • The report is further forwarded to the District Magistrate.
    • The District Magistrate along with the consultation of the State Government decides on either accepting or rejecting the application.

Parole As a Right
    • Parole is not recognized as a right in India.
    • A prisoner’s claim to parole is not absolute, and prison authorities have considerable discretion in granting parole to that prisoner.

Deduction of Parole
    • In the case of Sunil Fulchand Shah v. Union of India (2000) the Supreme Court stated that a temporary release of the person detained does not change his status because his freedom and liberty have not been entirely restored.
    • As a result, temporary release on parole cannot be deducted from the maximum imprisonment period.

Parole & CrPC
    • There are no sections in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (CrPC) that deal with parole.
    • There is no unified legislation in India that deals with it, individual States have their own laws governing it.

Case Laws:

  • In the case of the State of Haryana and Ors. v. Mohinder Singh (2000), the Supreme Court clarified the difference between parole and furlough which are as follows:
    • Parole and furlough are both forms of conditional release.
    • Parole can be awarded in short-term detention, whereas furlough is allowed in long-term detention.
    • Parole lasts for one month, whereas furlough lasts for a maximum of 14 days.
    • Parole can be given multiple times, whereas furlough has a limit.
  • In the case of Election Commission of India v. Mukhtar Ansari (2017), the Delhi High Court declared that custody parole cannot be used as a substitute for bail and cannot be extended for long periods of time or for daily visits.