New Delhi: The Supreme Court has urged the Central government to take measures to release undertrial prisoners and convicts who have served a substantial part of their sentence as a way to celebrate 75 years of independence as "Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav". "The idea is to unclog jails and unclog the trial courts," said the court.
The bench comprising of Justice SK Kaul and Justice MM Sundresh made the observations during the hearing of the case regarding pending of appeals and bail pleas in the High Courts across the country. In the last hearing, the court had asked the HCs to make categories of cases with respect to the number of years since they are pending, and prioritise cases pending for more than 30 years.
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The court suggested the central government to have a discussion with the states and categorise prisoners for release. "We are not saying someone who has committed a crime should not suffer incarceration. But protracted trials and keeping someone behind bars for the longest possible time without a conviction cannot be the solution.
At the same time, first-time convicts of minor offences could be released on a bond of good behaviour. Similarly, after having gone through one third or more of a possible jail term, an under trial should also be released on bail," suggested the court to ASG KM Natraj.
"Who is going to give them their life back if they are acquitted of all charges after 10 years? If we cannot decide a case within 10 years, they should ideally be granted bail," said the court. The court asked the ASG to take instructions over the court's suggestions and suggested doing it as a one-time measure for now so that a larger message can be sent.
