S. 433a imposes a constraint on the unconditional power of the appropriate government to release life convicts by granting remissions under S. 432 of the Code.

JAGANNATHA SHETTY, J.

( 1 ) THE Petitioners herein are prisoners undergoing life imprisonment. They were convicted of a capital offence, that is, an offence for which death is one of the punishments prescribed by law. Their common case is that they have suffered imprisonment exceeding fourteen years including the remissions earned by them and are,, therefore, entitled to be considered for release if not set at liberty in the normal course. They complain that the State Government has refused to consider their cases on the ground that S- 433a cripc 1973 ("the Code") is a bar for such consideration. They have asked for a declaration that S. 433a is inapplicable to their cases.

( 2 ) THE petitions are resisted by the respondents on the sole ground that the petitioners have not yet served fourteen years of imprisonment as required by S. 433a of the Code.

( 3 ) THE decision on these petitions, therefore, turns on the true scope of s. 433a arid for immediate reference the same is set out below:"433a Restriction on powers of remission or commutation in certain cases:-Notwithstanding anything contained in section 432, where a sentence of imprisonment for life is imposed on conviction of a person for an offence for which death is one of the punishments provided by law. or where a sentence of death imposed on a person has been commuted under Section 433 into one of imprisonment for life, such person shall not be released from prison unless he had served at least fourteen years of imprisonment. "this new section was introduced, in the Code on the recommendation of the joint Committee of Parliament reporting on 'he Indian Penal Code (Amendment) bill, 1972. The Joint Committee on the Indian Penal Code (Amendment) bill, 1972 had suggested the insertion of a proviso to S. 57 of IPC to the effect that a person who has been sentenced to death and whose death sentence has been commuted to that of life Imprisonment and a person who has been sentenced to life imprisonment for a capita] offence should no,t be released from prison unless he has served atleast fourteen years of imprisonment. That amendment, however, was not incorporated in the IPC, since that particular matter relates. . more appropriately to the Criminal Procedure code. S. 433a was accordingly inserted by the Code of Criminal procedure (Amendment) Act, 1978 (Central Act 45 of 1978) to cover the proviso inserted by the Joint Committee. It came into force with effect from 24th February, 1979.

( 4 ) A perusal of S. 433a shows that it has only a limited operation. It does not apply to all life convicts. It applies only to those cases in which the prisoner convicted of a capital offence is undergoing a, life sentence. It provides that such person shall not be released from prison unless he has served at least -fourteen years of imprisonment. It has in other words, imposed a constraint on the unconditional power of the appropriate government to release such convicts by granting remissions undef S. 432 of the Code.

( 5 ) MR. Thilak Hegde, learned counsel for the petitioners, however, made twp submissions. First, he submitted that the period of fourteen years prescribed under S. 433a includes the period of-remission earned by the petitioners; and second, that the section has no retrospective operation and so should not be applied to persons convicted prior its introduction. In support of the first contention, he referred to us the 1974 rules made under the Karnataka prisons Act, 1963 and in particular to the rules under Chapter VI therein. Those rules provide procedure for giving remissions, that is, regulating award of marks to prisoners and consequentially shortening of their sentence. It may not be necessary to refer to those rules in detail They are nothing more than guidelines to the appropriate authorities to grant ordinary or special remissions to prisoners under certain circumstances. We may take it that the petitioners too have earned such remissions. Whether those remissions would

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