Panel to determine period of temporary release, category of convicts and under trails to be considered
SRINAGAR: Setting the stage for temporary release of convicts and under-trails lodged in jails of Jammu & Kashmir, the government on Monday constituted a high-powered committee for decongesting prisons in the Union Territory.
According to wire service—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), the committee comprises of executive chairman State Legal Services Authority, Principal Secretary Home and Director General Prisons. Presently, Justice Rajesh Bindal is head of the State Legal Service Authority, whose patron is Chief Justice Gita Mittal.
Senior IAS officer Shaleen Kabra and IPS officer VK Singh are respectively heads of Home and Prisons departments. According to the Home department, the committee shall consider the class/category of prisons to be considered for parole and interim bail depending upon the nature of offence, the number of years to which he/she has been sentenced or severity of offence with which he/she is charged.
The period of parole and interim bail will also be decided by the panel. The committee has been empowered to invite any other officer to participate in its proceedings. On March 23, the Supreme Court had ordered all states and Union Territories to consider releasing some prisoners on parole to reduce overcrowding in prisons.
“Each state shall constitute a high powered committee, it will determine which class of prisoners can be released on parole or interim bail for such period as may be appropriate,” reads the order by Chief Justice of India S.A Bobde. As already reported by KNO, as many as 146 under-trails are lodged in J&K jails in crimes whose quantum of punishment is upto seven years.