Kerala   

A victory of sorts

For 80-year old Annamma, who spent 15 years behind bars after her conviction in a murder case in 1992, April 27 last was a day of deliverance. The elderly woman returned home thanks to a campaign waged by the Vadhasiksha Virudha Samithi.

On the day of her release, Committee Against Capital Punishment convener K. Girish Kumar was on an indefinite fast before the Secretariat to press for release of eligible prisoners and a ban on capital punishment. Accompanied by her brother P.M. Mathai, she reached the pandal where Mr. Girish Kumar was on fast to greet him before she left for her home at Prakkanam in Pathanamthitta.

Annamma was one of the many prisoners languishing in jails on account of the Government not acting upon the Prison Advisory Committee recommendations on release of eligible prisoners. Annamma was sentenced to life imprisonment and her son for eight years rigorous imprisonment. Her son left the prison on completion of his sentence, but she was forced to remain behind bars as the crime for which she was convicted was the murder of a woman.

The release norms are stricter in cases involving death of women.

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