Bengal releases 45 life convicts

Kolkata: Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday said that 45 life convicts, each of whom has completed more than 14 years in prison, are being released by the state government, while a new report from the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) shows that 226 under-trial prisoners were freed in the state between April and June 2025 following Under Trial Review Committee (UTRC) recommendations.

Banerjee wrote on X that since 2011, 840 such life convicts had already been freed in accordance with the law, and congratulated the latest group of 45 prisoners and their families. She said the decision recognised their good conduct in custody and expressed hope that they would rejoin society as responsible citizens.

Meanwhile, according to NALSA’s quarterly report, West Bengal’s total prison population in April 2025 stood at 24,926, of whom 19,611 (78.68%) were under-trials. UTRCs identified 984 prisoners for review, representing 3.95 per cent of the state’s inmates. Of those identified, 444 were recommended for release, or 45.12 per cent.

Nearly all recommendations were acted upon in court: 432 applications were filed, a filing rate of 97.30 per cent, with 32 still pending. Courts granted bail in 276 cases and refused it in 125, leading to the release of 226 prisoners during the quarter. This amounts to 50.90 per cent of those recommended and 0.91 per cent of the overall prison population. All recommended cases had legal representation, with 278 represented by private lawyers and 166 by legal aid counsel.

UTRC meetings were held across all 23 District Legal Services Authorities in West Bengal during the quarter, while the State Legal Services Authority conducted the mandated pre- and post-review meetings.

Nationally, NALSA recorded 5,016 under-trial releases in the quarter out of 9,079 recommended.

Bengal’s 226 releases accounted for about 4.5 per cent of that total. While the state’s filing rate exceeded the national average of 86.46 per cent, its recommendation rate was below the national figure of 71.17 per cent.