Srinagar, April 22 KNS (KNS): A Kashmir based lawyer Aamir masoodi today wrote a letter to Chief Justice to seek his intervention to give concession to the under trail Prisoners lodged In different Jails of Kashmir Valley.
The letter which is with KNS reads, " not only our country but the whole world got caught into the covid 19 pandemic. In this horrible situation it is repeatedly being advised to stay at home so as to stay safe. Because home is considered as the safest place to stay in when there is havoc hovering every nook and corner. In this context an advisory has recently been issued by the Highest court of justice that the persons who are convicted or are under trial for the offences which carries punishment up to 7 years and the persons who are elderly or sick may be granted parole or interim bail of 60 days and the same to be extended if the circumstances so demand."
"But the worth mentioning fact is that any person who is charged with the offence carrying punishment of 7 years cannot fall within the category of under trials because those persons are entitled to bail even before filling of charge sheet and during judicial remand as per the mandate of sec 437 0f crpc and various land mark judgments delivered by this hon’ble Court. The situation of jails in Kashmir valley is very much horrible as the number of prisoners in jails exceeds the number what actually the jails can sustain, this sort of congestion can create havoc by allowing the free spread of virus i.e. covid 19 and the prisoners lodged here are not provided the appropriate medical care which makes them more vulnerable to infection. It is pertinent to mention here that in Kashmir division the majority of prisoners lodged in these jails are the alleged offenders of heinous crimes which carries the punishment of life imprisonment," letter added.
It further states that the other category of prisoners here is of those who have spent precious period of their lives in jails and their respective trials are near about to conclude, now are at the verge of bail.
"The prisoners have a firm hope on your highness that in the current tough times they may be given a sort of relaxation or concession in terms of conditional interim bail who otherwise were exempted from the concession. This will help them to prevent their own self from the deadly virus and will also ease the way for others. Now the humble request to your lordship is that the favour may be shown to the prisoners of Kashmir in general and to those who have pinned their hope on highest court of justice in particular," he reads.(KNS)