The Maharashtra home department on Wednesday put on hold all parole applications, except those in the emergency and urgent categories, until a revised policy on the issue is finalised.
The Maharashtra home department on Wednesday put on hold all parole applications, except those in the emergency and urgent categories, until a revised policy on the issue is finalised. The department has instructed that no general parole should therefore be given till the revised rules are put in place.
“There is no ban on giving parole as such. The ones in the emergency and urgent categories are being granted. The general paroles have been put on hold for a few days, as a revised policy is in the making,” said principal secretary (home) Vijay Satbir Singh.
The home department has revised the policy for paroles and sent it to chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, who is also heading the home department, for approval. “We are expecting a nod for the revised policy from the CM in a couple of days. The paroles would be given as per the new rules,” additional DG (prison) B.K. Upadhyay said.
The policy change was suggested after convict Sajjad Mogul, jailed for the murder of Pallavi Purkayastha, went missing while he was on parole. The state government also attracted flak for giving repeated parole to actor Sanjay Dutt.
The proposal is aimed at deterring convicts from applying for parole and suggests that the number of parole days should be reduced to 45 from the 90 days at present. The proposal has also said that the district collector, and not the divisional commissioner, should be given the authority to approve parole. The divisional commissioner will be an authority to file an appeal to. The home department has claimed that the aim of the revised policy is to ensure that prisoners get parole for genuine reasons only, such as medical or family emergencies.
