HPC clears 8-week emergency parole for eligible inmates to decongest jails

New Delhi: A High Powered Committee (HPC) in a meeting on Tuesday recommended that in view of the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic which is "more virulent" and "fatal" in comparison to the last year's strain, eligible prison inmates should be granted emergency parole for a period of eight weeks or 90 days.

Director General (Prisons) Sandeep Goel told the HPC that once granted the same under the specified criteria, 4,000 under trial prisoners would be benefited and their release would ease out the jail population.

The members of the committee, headed by Executive Chairperson of Delhi State Legal Service Authority (DSLSA) and Delhi High Court Justice Vipin Sanghi, which includes Director (General) Prisons, Sandeep Goel, B S Bhalla, Principal Secretary (Home), Govt. of NCT of Delhi and Kanwal Jeet Arora, Member Secretary, DSLSA, stated that, "it is manifest that the situation of Covid-19 in Delhi NCR is not only alarming but threatening. On daily basis, in the last month, continuously, not only the positivity rate, but also the death rate in Covid-19 positive cases is spiking sharply".

"The situation, at present, is much more dangerous than it was a year ago," the committee further said.

The committee, constituted by the Supreme Court, was formed to determine the class or category of prisoners who can be released on interim bail or parole in the backdrop of the pandemic, depending not only upon the severity of the offence but also upon its nature and/or upon other facts such as the period of incarceration, among others.

Up till February 10, as many as 5124 under-trial prisoners/convicts had been released on interim bail/parole/remission as part of decongestion efforts made by the HPC.

However, after assessing the situation of the pandemic in a meeting held on February 17, the committee decided not to recommend extension of interim bail of the prisoners, asking them to surrender.

"In a matter of few weeks, this second wave has left everyone 'gasping for air'. It has led everyone with struggle to breathe or with asphyxia, which is the most terrifying human experience," the minutes of the recent meeting stated.

The committee further said that the situation observed by it in it's last meeting has taken a "360 degree turn" and is becoming "alarming" with each day and accordingly "there is an imminent and urgent need to take affirmative and effective steps to prevent the outbreak of Covid-19 inside jails and for ensuring social distancing inside prisons by identifying and determining the class/categories of prisoners who can once again be released on interim bails/paroles".

While the criteria for release are largely the same as last year, some recommendations that have been allowed include not extending the interim relief to those who had committed crimes while on interim bail last year.