Gujarat High Court
Tejabhai Talsabhai Parmar vs State Of Gujarat on 3 September, 2021
Bench: B.N. Karia
R/SCR.A/8543/2021 ORDER DATED: 03/09/2021
IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/SPECIAL CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO. 8543 of 2021
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TEJABHAI TALSABHAI PARMAR
Versus
STATE OF GUJARAT & 2 other(s)
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Appearance:
THROUGH JAIL(50) for the Applicant(s) No. 1
for the Respondent(s) No. 2,3
MR HK PATEL, APP for the Respondent(s) No. 1
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CORAM:HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE B.N. KARIA
Date : 03/09/2021
ORAL ORDER
Rule. Learned APP waives service of notice of rule for and
on behalf of the respondents.
By way of present application, the applicant has prayed to
regularize the late surrender of 88 days when he was on
furlough leave during the month of May 2020 by the
competent authorities.
Heard learned APP for the respondent-State.
Learned APP for the respondents has strongly objected the
prayer made by the applicant and submitted that when the
applicant was released on furlough leave for 14 days during
the month of May, 2020 and later on his such period was
extended for 12 days, he was surrendered late before the jail
authorities by 88 days. That, the jail conduct of the present
R/SCR.A/8543/2021 ORDER DATED: 03/09/2021
applicant is not good. That, the application for regularizing her
late surrender has been rejected by the Administrative Officer,
Office of the Prisons and Reforms Administration, Government
of Gujarat, Ahmedabad vide order dated 22.02.2021. Thus, it
was submitted by learned APP for the respondents to dismiss
present application.
Having considered the contents of the application filed by
the applicant; having heard learned APP for the respondent
State as well as perused the papers and jail remarks available
on record, it appears that the applicant was released on
furlough leave by the competent authority for 14 days and
later on such period was extended for 12 days during the
month of May 2020, at that time, he was surrendered late
before the jail authorities by 88 days because of pandemic
Covid-19, and in this connection, the applicant has
approached the competent authority with a request to
regularize his late surrender period but vide order dated
22.02.2021 Administrative Officer, Office of the Prisons and
Reforms Administration, Government of Gujarat, Ahmedabad
has rejected his application.
It further appears that co-ordinate bench of this Court
vide order dated 11.06.2021 passed in Special Criminal
Application No. 2705 of 2021 regularized 318 days of late
surrender. Relevant paragraphs of such judgment are
R/SCR.A/8543/2021 ORDER DATED: 03/09/2021
reproduced as under:
9. On perusal of various orders passed by the authority in
respect of other convicts, it appears that the authority has
regularized various days i.e. from 1 day to 3262 days while
maintaining jail punishment with condition that the convict/s
shall surrender in time to the jail authority in future. Now, so far
as the present convict is concerned, the authority has taken into
consideration the fact that the convict has applied before this
Court and this Court has granted temporary bail. It has been
observed in the impugned communication dated 05.01.2021 that
the convict came to be arrested as he was absconding for 318
days.
10. Now, the observation made by the Division Bench of this
Court in the case of Vikas Narendrabhai Vs. State of Gujarat and
another in Criminal Misc. Application No.1360 of 2014 in
Criminal Appeal No.2884 of 2008 dated 04.02.2014 needs to be
taken into account for deciding the present application. The
Division Bench has considered Section 48 of the Prison Act and
Rules 1287 of the Gujarat Jail Manual. The Division Bench has
observed in paras-4 and 5 which reads as under:-
Para 4: xxxx
Para 5: xxxx
12. In the present case, on perusal of the jail remarks, it
appears that three furlough has been forfeited by the authority for
late surrender of 318 days. The convict has applied to the
concerned jail authority for cancellation of three furlough,
however, the same came to be rejected by the authority below.
R/SCR.A/8543/2021 ORDER DATED: 03/09/2021
Thus, it appears that the jail punishment has been inflicted upon
the convict for his late surrender of 318 days. Now, considering
the fact that the authority in other cases has regularized late
surrender of various days i.e. from 1 day to 3262 days by
maintaining jail punishment with condition that in future, the
concerned convict shall surrender to the jail authority in time. If
this course is adopted in this matter also, it would serve the end of
justice.
Considering the reasons narrated in the application and
the circumstances which are narrated by the applicant, the
order passed by the Administrative Officer, Office of the
Prisons and Reforms Administration, Government of Gujarat,
Ahmedabad vide order dated 22.02.2021 deserves to be
quashed and set aside and the period of 88 days of late
surrender deserves to be regularized and is hereby regularized.
Punishment imposed by the trial Court is not disturbed.
Accordingly, the present application is allowed in the
above terms. Rule is made absolute to the aforesaid extent.
Registry is directed to send a copy of this order to the
concerned jail authorities through email or fax forthwith.
(B.N. KARIA, J)
K. S. DARJI
