SC questions Haryana govt over remission policy

The apex court has directed the state government to respond within two weeks on whether such a policy, which the court said appeared running counter to section 433-A of the CrPC, could be framed under Article 161 of the Constitution

The Supreme Court has questioned the Haryana government over a policy of granting remission to life-term convicts aged 75 years or above, saying it appeared to be in “conflict” with a provision of law.

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The apex court has directed the state government to respond within two weeks on whether such a policy, which the court said appeared running counter to section 433-A of the CrPC, could be framed under Article 161 of the Constitution.

Section 433-A of the CrPC also says that a convict shall not be released from jail unless he had served at least 14 years of the imprisonment, if he has been sentenced to life for an offence that entails maximum of death sentence or in cases where capital punishment has been commuted.

The issue came up before a bench of Justices U U Lalit and Dinesh Maheshwari which was hearing an appeal in a criminal case. The bench was informed about a policy which stated that on the occasion of August 15, 2019, the governor of Haryana had granted special remission to certain prisoners who were undergoing sentence.

As per the policy, special remission could be granted to those, including male convicts of 75 years or above who were sentenced for life and have completed eight years of the actual sentence.