Kolkata: Calcutta High Court has overturned a single-judge order that had directed the premature release of life convict Md Khalid in the 1993 Bowbazar blast case, holding that the state’s Sentence Review Board acted within its discretion when it declined to recommend his release.
The Division Bench of Justices Debangsu Basak and Md. Shabbar Rashidi observed that a court cannot act as an appellate authority over an executive decision so long as that decision is reasoned and supported by material. “Judicial interference is warranted only if the authority’s decision is perverse, arbitrary or contrary to law,” the judges said.
The case arose from a powerful explosion in Bowbazar on March 16, 1993, which killed 70 people and injured many others. The accused was arrested that year, convicted by a TADA court in 2001 and sentenced to life imprisonment.
He has remained in custody for about 32 years. Since 2012, he has been granted parole from time to time without adverse incident. Reports from the prison superintendent and the Chief Probation and Aftercare Officer recommended his release, citing good conduct, long incarceration and health issues. Yet, the Sentence Review Board, in its meeting on October 9, 2023, unanimously resolved not to recommend premature release. The Board weighed strong objections raised by Kolkata Police, which highlighted the convict’s past association with a notorious co-accused, his alleged involvement in criminal activity prior to conviction, risks to public order, and fears that witnesses might face retaliation.
The High Court noted these were relevant considerations and could not be dismissed as baseless. While acknowledging the prisoner’s age, diabetes and decades spent in custody, the Bench held that the Board had considered all factors and arrived at a plausible conclusion.
Accordingly, the Division Bench set aside the earlier order directing release, dismissed the appeal, and disposed of connected applications without any order as to cost. It clarified that this would not prevent the competent authorities from reconsidering the plea for remission or premature release in future under the jail code and government guidelines.
The denial by the state government also comes at a time when it recently released 45 life convicts, each of whom has completed more than 14 years in prison.