GANESHLAL HIRALAL KARWA Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petitioner-Ganeshlal Karwa is a life convict who has filed this petition challenging the order of deducting period of 102 days and 70 days from remission awarded to him and also for direction to consider the extended period of furlough granted to him while calculating his actual period of sentence.

(2.) The petitioner's case is that there was no prior approval to the deduction of 102 days from remission as required by law. Relying upon the case of Vishnu Tejram Bisen vs State of Maharashtra [2006 (2) Bom.C.R.(Cri.) 338], it is argued that the punishment of 70 days awarded for extended furlough of 14 days should be set aside and the punishment in the proportion 1:5 should be reduced to 1:3 i.e. to 42 days. It is further argued that the period of extended furlough should be considered as sentence undergone and should not be deducted from remission. Reliance was mainly placed on the Single Bench judgment of this Court in the case of Dadu @ Tulsidas Manpher Patel vs State of Maharashtra [2002 (Cri.Supp.) Bom.C.R. 390].

(3.) It is argued before us that the petitioner had proceeded on parole on 30.10.1993 for a period of 15 days. However, he did not surrender on due date, but was late by 34 days and, therefore, punishment at the rate of 1:3 was imposed upon him by the Superintendent of Prison. The Superintendent of Prison could not have awarded punishment more than 60 days without prior approval of the Inspector General of Prisons as per Rules then prevalent and since there was no prior approval, the punishment of 102 days is illegal and, therefore, there cannot be deduction of 102 days from total remission to which the petitioner is entitled.