Grant Immediate Release to Long-term Convict: Guidelines Must Not Crush Reformative Potential: Supreme Court

In a groundbreaking judgment handed down on September 21, 2023, by a bench comprising Justice S. Ravindra Bhat and Justice Dipankar Datta, a long-term convict was granted immediate release. The judgment, which has far-reaching implications for the Indian criminal justice system, emphasized the importance of not allowing guidelines to crush the reformative potential of inmates.

The court's decision came in response to a writ petition filed by the convict, who had already spent over 26 years in prison, including 8 years of remission. The petitioner's case prompted a detailed examination of statutory provisions, rules, and government guidelines related to premature release, remission, and the exercise of statutory discretion.

Justice S. Ravindra Bhat, writing for the bench, underscored the significance of fair and reasonable exercise of discretion by the state government in matters of premature release. He remarked, "While the government order dated 04.06.2022 issued by the State of Kerala is not directly challenged, it merits comment, and a note of caution. Blanket exclusion of certain offenses, from the scope of grant of remission, especially by way of an executive policy, is not only arbitrary but turns the ideals of reformation that run through our criminal justice system, on its head."

The judgment criticized the practice of classifying convicts based solely on the nature of their past crimes and inflexible guidelines that prevent individual consideration. "Classifying convicts through guidelines which are inflexible, based on their crime committed in the distant past can result in the real danger of overlooking the reformative potential of each individual convict," the court observed.

Justice Bhat also expressed concerns about the impact of such guidelines, stating, "The practical impact of a guideline, which bars consideration of a premature release request by a convict who has served over 20 or 25 years, based entirely on the nature of the crime committed in the distant past, would be to crush the life force out of such an individual, altogether."

Supreme Court ordered the immediate release of the petitioner, considering his good conduct, positive recommendations from the Jail Advisory Board, and the fact that he had already served over 26 years in prison.

Date of Decision: September 21, 2023

JOSEPH vs STATE OF KERALA & ORS.