HC Questions Yardstick in Granting Remission to Life Convicts In 97 Murder

Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court on Thursday directed the prisons department of Telangana state to be equitable regarding the premature release of life convicts on remission, questioning authorities over the yardsticks, other than conduct, for granting remission to life convicts.

Justice C.V. Bhaskar Reddy of the High Court was dealing with two separate petitions filed by kin of Akthar Khan and Arif Ali, two life convicts in a murder case of 1997. Along with the two, three co-accused were also sentenced to life imprisonment.

After serving 27 years in jail, the three co-accused were released on GO 51 issued by the Telangana government on August 18, 2023, which the petitioners alleged was discriminatory behaviour.

Senior counsel Pushpindhar Kaur, representing the petitioners, brought to the notice of the court that there was no adverse record regarding the duo’s conduct during their imprisonment. However, the authorities did not grant remission to them, citing a lack of clarity on reasons for the same. She requested the court grant the same relief to the petitioners, on par with the co-accused.

After hearing the contentions, the court enquired about the same with the government counsel and directed consideration of the petitioners’ case for remission within four weeks. The court also directed the prisons department to submit their contentions by November 21.