Right to life includes convict’s right to procreate, says Delhi High Court

NEW DELHI: The right to life includes a convict’s right to procreate, the Delhi High Court has held while

granting a four-week parole to a 41-year-old murder

convict serving life term so that he could have a child with his wife, aged 38, with the help of certain medical procedures.

Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma said a convict does not become a lesser citizen only due to his incarceration and, in the present case, where the “biological clock” of the convict and his partner may become a barrier for them to conceive once the sentence got over.

The court clarified that it was not dealing with the issue of grant of parole for the purpose of maintaining

conjugal relationship and conjugal rights but the fundamental right of a convict to undergo treatment required to have a child as per the jail rules.

It added that the right to procreation is not absolute and has to be examined by taking into account various factors.

In the present case, the petitioner was in prison for the last 14 years and sought parole on the ground that he and his wife wanted to protect their lineage, for which the petitioner would have to undergo certain medical tests in order to have a child through in vitro fertilisation (IVF).

The court directed that the petitioner be released for a period of four weeks on parole subject to a personal bond of Rs 20,000 and one surety of the like amount and some other conditions.