Gorakhpur (UP): India`s oldest prisoner
Brij Bihari Pandey has been freed from a jail here at the age
of 108, having spent 24 years behind bars for committing
multiple murders.
Bihari was 84 when he along with 15 others had killed
one Bhagwant Pandey and three others in Maharajganj district
on June 15, 1987.
The killing stemmed from Bihari`s desire to become a
`mahant` of the local Jagannath temple. After one Ramanujdas
was elected to the post in his place, an angry Bihari plotted
the mahant`s murder and that of three others.
In December 2009, Bihari and other accused were held
guilty by a lower court and sentenced to life imprisonment,
Jailor of Divisional Jail Navami Lal said.
Bihari is suffering from various ailments and is
almost bed ridden and undergoing treatment.
In the last week of May, Bihari along with 10 other
convicts, was granted bail by the Allahabad High Court, which
paved way for his release.
"Following the court`s order, he was released from the
jail yesterday after his nephew`s son completed the
formalities," sources here said.
As Bihari was unable to walk, a car was provided near
his cell to bring him home, his family members said.
In 2010, the officer of the Maharajganj district
magistrate had sent a clemency petition to the Uttar Pradesh
governor for setting him free in view of his advanced age.
PTI
