Kerala - Kochi   

Reprieve for under-trial prisoners

Staff Reporter

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Kochi: A Division Bench of the Karalla High Court on Thursday directed that all under-trial prisoners who had been detained in jail for the maximum period of imprisonment provided for offences they were charged with be released forthwith without any bail bond.

The Bench of Chief Justice V.K. Bali and Justice P.R.Raman also ordered that under-trial prisoners who had been under detention for more than half of the prescribed period of imprisonment they would have got if they were found guilty be released on their executing a bond.

The court directed the sessions judges and chief judicial magistrates concerned to take decisions on individual cases separately and comply with the directives forthwith. The court directed the Government to send the list of under-trial prisoners to the sessions judges and chief judicial magistrates of the areas where the prisoners were detained.

The directives were passed in a case relating to the detention of under-trial prisoners. As per Section 436A of the Criminal Procedure, which was inserted by away of a Cr.PC Amendment, 2005, an under trial, other than those accused of an offence for which death penalty is prescribed, could be released with or without sureties if he/she has been under detention for more than half of the prescribed period of imprisonment.

Bus, lorry strike

The Bench admitted a writ petition seeking to declare illegal the ongoing strike by bus and lorry operators.

The court issued notice to the Government and other respondents on a writ petition filed by K.U. Paul from Ernakulam. The court also ordered that notice be sent to the bus and lorry operators' associations concerned.

The petition sought a direction to the Government to cancel the permits of buses and lorries involved in the strike. The petition would come up before the court on Friday.

Bail denied

Justice J.M. James rejected the bail petition filed by Rajeev alias Sarma arrested in connection with the sending of three letter bombs to various persons in Thiruvananthapuram.

A sessions judge had dismissed his bail petition. The Director-General of Prosecutions said that if the petitioner was released on bail at this stage, investigation officers might not be able to effectively investigate the intention expressed in the letters. The court observed that it was not a fit case to grant bail.

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