NEW DELHI: On Monday, the Supreme Court expressed its discontent with the stance taken by the Delhi government regarding the potential release of a convict serving life imprisonment for 20 years without the opportunity for remission. The court was taken aback by the oral submission from the counsel representing the Delhi government in the case concerning convict Sukhdev Yadav, also known as Pehalwan, involved in the Nitish Katara murder case. The bench, consisting of Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan, requested that this position be affirmed in an affidavit sworn under oath. They indicated that such a stance from the government could be considered contemptuous of the Supreme Court’s prior ruling that mandated a 20-year jail term.
SC: 20-year jail terms lose their significance if the government adopts this position
“How can a government adopt this position? If the state asserts that a 20-year jail sentence does not allow for release, the very purpose of such sentences diminishes,” remarked the bench.
The court was reviewing a plea filed by Sukhdev Yadav, who was sentenced to life imprisonment with a stipulation requiring 20 years of actual imprisonment without the option of remission. Yadav, convicted in the 2002 Nitish Katara murder case, submitted a petition seeking furlough, and as his jail term nears completion in a few weeks, the court demanded the government’s response on his eligibility for release.
Neelam Katara, the mother of the victim, was represented by senior advocate Aparajita Singh, who argued that a life sentence involving 20 years without remission implies that the convict should become eligible for remission after completing those 20 years.
However, the bench was not swayed and voiced its disapproval of the Delhi government’s position on the matter of liberty. “Is this what the state perceives as the concept of liberty? We will address this. We require your home secretary to articulate a position under oath after consulting legal counsel. If necessary, we may summon your home secretary,” the bench stated.
On October 3, 2016, the Supreme Court had initially sentenced Vikas Yadav and his cousin Vishal to 25 years in prison without the benefit of remission for their involvement in the kidnapping and murder of Nitish Katara. Alongside them, co-convict Sukhdev Yadav received a 20-year prison sentence in the same case.
Previously, the Delhi High Court had upheld the life sentences imposed on Vikas and Vishal by the trial court, specifying a 30-year prison term without remission for both. Sukhdev Yadav had been sentenced to a 25-year term.
All three men were found guilty of abducting Nitish from a wedding party on the night of February 16, 2002, and murdering him due to his alleged romantic involvement with Bharti Yadav, Vikas’s sister. Bharti is the daughter of the Uttar Pradesh politician D P Yadav, who is currently incarcerated in connection with another murder case.
