New Delhi, 17th November 2022: The killers of Rajiv Gandhi were released from jail on the orders of the Supreme Court. Now based on that decision, other prisoners can also make similar demands.
Swami Shraddhanand, who is serving a life sentence for killing his wife has filed an application in the court demanding release citing the right to equality.
Shraddhanand’s lawyer Varun Thakur said
before the bench of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud that Swami Shraddhanand has been in jail for 29 consecutive years. He hasn’t got a chance to get out on parole once again.
He argued in court that the killers of 16 people, including the former PM, have been released after serving 30 years in prison. During this, they also got parole several times. 43 people were also injured in this incident. Those who carried out such a big incident have been released.
He said that this is a classical case of violation of the right to equality.
The bench has accepted the demand for early hearing on the application of Swami Shraddhanand.
Varun Thakur said that Swami Shraddhanand is over 80 years old and has been in jail since March 1994.
Shraddhanand said in his application that he had applied for parole in 2014, but till now no decision has been taken on that.
Swami Shraddhanand is accused of killing his wife for the property. Shakereh, the granddaughter of Sir Mirza Ismail, the Dewan of Mysore, married Shraddhanand in 1986. Shraddhanand had buried his wife alive in 1991 in a state of intoxication.
Shraddhanand was arrested on April 20, 1994, and his wife’s skeleton was exhumed. He was sentenced to death by the trial court in 2000. In 2005, the Karnataka High Court also upheld this sentence.
However, in 2008, the Supreme Court converted this sentence to life imprisonment.