SC: RELEASE UNDERTRIALS WHO HAD SPENT HALF OF THE MAXIMUM PRESCRIBED SENTENCE A sizeable number of undertrials (prisoners under pre-trial detention period) will be out of prisons soon as the Supreme Court of India has ordered the release of those prisoners who have spent half of the maximum sentence prescribed for the offences they are charged with. A decision in this regard had been taken by the Modi Government a few days ago but the decision required the concurrence of the States, a process which would have taken time. The order came after Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi said the law and home ministries were in the process of consulting states on the issue, but urged the court to pass any judicial order facilitating the process. The total number of undertrials is 254857 as per the latest report of the National Crime Recrords Bureau for the year ending 2012. The undertrials constitute about 2/3 of the inmates in Indian prisons. The maximum number of the undertrials is from West Bengal. It is 46.6 per cent of the total number of inmates in prisons. Uttar Pradesh comes next with 27.3 per cent. Muslims constituted 21 per cent of the total number of undertrials. The Supreme Court has asked the trial court judges to allow the undertrials to be out of jail on personal bond with or without any surety which means the accused will have to remain out on bail and face the trial. The court directed the trial court judges to visit prisons from October 1 to identify the undertrials who have already undergone half of the maximum sentence and asked the judicial officers to complete the task within two months. “The judicial officers (magistrate/sessions judge/chief judicial magistrate) shall identify prisoners who have completed half of the maximum period of imprisonment provided for the offences they are charged with. After complying the procedure under Section 436A of Criminal Procedure Code, they shall pass appropriate order in jail itself for the release of such prisoners,” the bench headed by chief justice R M Lodha said. This court’s order will bring big relief to lakhs of prisoners who are poor and languishing in the jail in petty cases as they are not able to pay sureties and bail bonds to get out of jail. The bench referred to Section 436A of Cr Pc which speaks about maximum period for which an undertrial prisoner can be detained and it stipulates that such prisoners can be released by the court on a personal bond with or without sureties if he/she has spent half of the maximum period of imprisonment in jail. The bench was told that in many cases the accused have spent more time in jail than the actual sentence which might be awarded to him or her in case of conviction. The apex court made it clear that there is no need for lawyers to be present while judicial officers take decision for release of prisoners and asked the judicial officers to file compliance report with the Registrar of the concerned high court after finishing the assignment. Thereafter the registrar of high courts shall file report with the Registrar General of the Supreme Court. The court order came on two different PILs seeking court’s order for constitution of fast track courts so that the cases involving undertrials can be expeditiously disposed of or release the prisoners on bail as they have been languishing in jail for several years for petty offences. “The Supreme Court’s order is inspiring and welcome,” said Divya Iyer, Research Manager at Amnesty International India. “Two out of three prisoners in India are undertrials. Excessive pre-trial detention violates detainees’ right to a fair and speedy trial, and leads to overcrowding in jails.” “Releasing eligible undertrials is however only the first step. Authorities need to also set up various mechanisms to prevent excessive pre-trial detention in the future. These include proper prison record management, informing undertrials about their rights, better co-ordination to ensure that undertrials attend their court hearings, and improved legal aid,” she said. Amnesty International India’s “Take Injustice Personally” campaign aims to identify and facilitate the release of undertrial prisoners eligible for release under law, including those who have already been in prison for over half the term they would have faced if convicted. These undertrials are eligible to be released on personal bond under Section 436A of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Subscribe LAWTELLER (monthly-magazine) at lawteller
Posted on: Tue, 09 Sep 2014 10:19:52 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015