Calcutta High Court stays single-judge order to consider early release of Bowbazar Blast convict

The Calcutta High Court on Monday stayed a single judge order directing the West Bengal State Sentence Review Board (SSRB) to consider the early release of Mohd Khalid, who has been in jail for the last 31 years after being convicted in the Bowbazar bomb blast case of 1993 [State of West Bengal vs Md Khalid]..A Bench of Chief Justice TS Sivagnanam and Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharyya referred to the judgment in Arun Gawali vs State of Maharashtra, wherein the Bombay High Court held that convicts charged under special Acts like the Terrorism And Disruptive Activities (Prevention) (TADA) Act were excluded from getting the benefit of remission. "At the outset, we clarify that there is no fundamental right to remission. This Court has to consider the effect of this judgment on this case. Since fine questions of law are required to be considered and any decision will have precedential value. Further, we take note of the fact that there are other four convicts in the case. Therefore, there will be a stay on the operative part of the judgment of the single-judge," the Division Bench said today while admitting the State's appeal against the single-judge verdict. The Bench added that it would hear the final arguments in the case from June 24. .The Court was hearing the State's appeal against an April 10 order passed by Justice Sabyasachi Bhattacharyya, who had urged the government to consider granting remission to Khalid.Khalid was among those convicted in the 1993 Bowbazar blasts case in which two buildings were gutted in Central Kolkata's Bowbazar on March 16, 1993, killing 69 persons. The blast took place after the explosives were stocked in the two buildings by Rashid Khan.Khalid, who was sentenced to life in prison for his role, moved the Calcutta High Court seeking premature release after having spent three decades in jail.The SSRB had earlier refused to entertain his representation, primarily on the ground that he was a close associate of Rashid Khan, who was the mastermind of the bomb blast..Single judge Justice Bhattacharya, however, opined that such a past association was not enough to assume the Khalid would resume criminal activities if he were released from prison early. "The association of the petitioner with a criminal mastermind (who himself is in custody for as long) thirty-one years back cannot be a reasonable basis whatsoever for automatically assuming that the petitioner would merrily jump back into criminal activities the moment he is released. It is next to impossible for a person to continue to pretend to be a good man for over thirty years within the extremely restrictive confines of a prison, under constant supervision, scrutiny and monitoring of the jail authorities," the single-judge said. Justice Bhattacharya also noted reports from jail and probation authorities who recommended the premature release of Khalid while highlighting his good conduct in prison."What is evident from such reports is that the petitioner has been reformed beyond recognition over the last three decades in incarceration. It would be an unwarranted stigma on the petitioner if the shadow of his past is permitted to loom large over his present. It cannot be over-emphasized that the primary object in modern penology is reformation and correction and the objective of punishment is to reform the convict and bring him back to society, assisting him in reintegration and not to wreak vengeance on him due to his past conduct," the single judge added, before urging the authorities to consider Khalid's remission plea.