JUDGMENT

Phukan, J.-Leave is granted.

2. This appeal by special leave and the writ petition were heard together as the questions involved are common and, therefore, by this judgment we dispose of both the appeal and the writ petition.

3. The appellant - Avtar Singh, a convict, is undergoing the sentence of imprisonment. He filed an application before the Punjab and Haryana High Court seeking for a direction to the State Government to include the period of parole availed by him in the total period of imprisonment undergone by him. The application was dismissed by the impugned judgment holding that the period of parole cannot be counted towards the actual sentence undergone by him. Being aggrieved, present appeal by special leave has been filed. Avtar Singh has also filed the writ petition challenging the vires of sub-section (3) of Section 3 of the Haryana Good Conduct Prisoners (Temporary Release) Act, 1988 (for short the Act ) on the ground that the sub-section is arbitrary, illegal, ultra vires and unconstitutional.

4. When both the appeal and the writ petition came before a Bench of this Court, these were referred to a larger Bench with the following observations :-

"In the writ pet