Jessica murder: HC asks govt to take call on Manu Sharma's early release

NEW DELHI: The Delhi high court on Monday refused to grant relief to Siddharth Vashisht, also known as Manu Sharma, the main culprit in the Jessica Lall murder case, directing the Delhi government instead to re-consider his premature release plea in the Sentence Review Board (SRB) meeting in March. Manu Sharma, son of former Union Minister Venod Sharma, was sentenced to life for killing Jessica Lall in 1999. The trial court had acquitted him, but the High Court reversed the verdict and convicted him while the Supreme Court upheld the life sentence in April 2010.

Justice Najmi Waziri while disposing of the plea, granted liberty to Manu Sharma to file an application after the SRB decides the issue in its March meeting. Delhi government's Standing Counsel Rahul Mehra told the court that the SRB quarterly conducts a review meeting on premature release of the convicts and the next meeting would be held in March. He assured the court that it will consider Sharma's plea in the next meeting.

The court was hearing the plea filed by Manu Sharma through advocate Amit Sahni. Sharma has sought setting aside of government order, which has upheld recommendation rejecting his plea seeking pre-mature release.

On October 4, 2018 the SRB recommended to reject Manu Sharma's plea. Sharma told the court that on December 21, another bench of the Delhi HC ordered to release Sushil Kumar Sharma, who is serving a life term in the murder of his wife Naina Sahni, while quashing SRB order rejecting his pre-mature release.