Mattoo case: Delhi HC seeks report for convict’s parole

New Delhi: The Delhi high court on Friday asked the CBI and AAP government to file a status report on a plea by Santosh Kumar Singh, who is serving life term for the rape and murder of  law student Priyadarshini Mattoo in 1996, seeking parole to write LLM exams.

Justice Mukta Gupta issued notice to the CBI and the state on Singh's plea in which he said that he be granted the relief for a week from May 19.  The court listed the matter for May 16.

Lawyer  Avnish, appearing for the convict, said he was earlier granted the relief after which he surrendered and now his exams were going to start from May 19.

CBI counsel Sanjeev Bhandari said Santosh has been pursuing LLM, whose duration is of two years, for last four years and has not yet completed it.  Earlier also the convict was granted parole to write exams.

The 25-year old  victim  was raped and murdered in January 1996.  Santosh, a law student in Delhi University,  was acquitted by the trial court in the case on December 3, 1999, but the Delhi High Court had on October 27, 2006 reversed the decision, holding him guilty of rape and murder.

The high court had also awarded death penalty to him in the case. Santosh, son of a former IPS officer, had challenged his conviction and death sentence awarded by the high court.  In October 2010, the Supreme Court had upheld Santosh's conviction, but reduced the death sentence to life imprisonment.