New Delhi, Sept 26: The Supreme Court today stalled any further step by Haryana government to remit sentences of convicts and issued notice to it on a PIL alleging that the Om Prakash Chautala government, "to appease political cadre", had in the last four years released 275 life convicts after remitting their imprisonment period. A bench, comprising Justice S N Variava and Justice H K Sema, while issuing notice on the PIL filed by one Anil Sharma, directed the state not to release any more convict by remitting their sentences during the pendency of the petition.
Alleging violation of an apex court verdict, the petitioner through counsel G L Sanghi and Jasbir S Malik, pointed out that the state government was releasing life convicts even before they had completed the mandatory 14 years of imprisonment. Giving a long list of the convicts who have been released, the counsel for the petitioners said the Supreme Court had categorically held in a 1991 judgement that no life convict could be released prematurely before serving the sentence of at least 14 years. "The government of Haryana in complete violation of the provisions of Section 433-A of Criminal Procedure Code and in violation of the law settled by the apex court, has released the life convicts before the expiry of 14 years of sentence and again it has recommended for premature release of life convicts just to appease his political cadre," the petitioner said. Bureau Report