STATE TIMES NEWS
JAMMU: The government on Monday constituted High Powered Committee for the examination of the prisoners who are required to be released from prisons.
“In pursuance of order dated March 23, 2020 of the Supreme Court of India in Suo Moto Writ Petition(C) No. 1/2020 titled Contagion of COVID-19 virus in prisons, sanction is hereby accorded to the constitution of High Powered Committee comprising Executive Chairman, State Legal Services Authority as its Chairman, Principal Secretary, Home Department and Director General of Police (Prisons), J&K as Members,” reads the order issued by Home Department.
“The Committee may invite any other officer to participate in its deliberations and it shall determine the category/class of prisoners who may be considered for release on parole or Interim Bail for such period as may be thought appropriate, depending on the nature of offence, the number of years to which he or she has been sentenced or severity of the offence with which he/she is charged with and is facing trial or any other relevant factor, which the Committee may consider appropriate,” the order further stated and added, “The Committee, while considering the cases of prisoners for parole or interim bail, shall take into account the directions contained in para-11 of the order passed in Arnesh Kumar versus State of Bihar, (2014) 8 SCC 273.”
