( 1 ) THE petitioner-Prisoner challenges the order of punishment imposed by respondent No. 3-Superintendent of Sabarmati Central Jail and confirmed by Inspector General of Prisons. The petitioner had absconded and was apprehended by Police after 799 days and he thereby committed prison offence.

( 2 ) THE petitioner was involved in a murder case in 1974 and was arrested on 5-8-1974. He was tried and convicted by the Sessions Court, bombay and was awarded death sentence subject to the confirmation by high Court. That judgment was pronounced on 16-10-1975. The High court of Bombay confirmed the conviction, but awarded the sentence of life imprisonment. Thereafter on 15-4-1977, the petitioner was transferred from Central Jail, Yeravada (Maharashtra) to Sabarmati Central Jail in gujarat.

( 3 ) ON 8-4-1985, the petitioner was released on parole for seven days and he overstayed by 116 days unauthorisedly and surrendered on 10- 8-1985.

( 4 ) THE petitioner was thereafter released by the High Court on parole on 28-6-1986 for seven days and that parole was subsequently extended upto 20-7-1986. However, the petitioner did not surrender at all and overstayed and ultimately he was arrested by Police on 26-9-1988. After his arrest, he was tried for the other offences said to have been committed by him while he was absconding. They are Sessions Cases Nos. 114 and 115 of 1989, Criminal Case No. 3907 of 1988 and Terrorist Criminal cases Nos. 7 and 8 of 1989. In all these cases, he has been acquitted.

( 5 ) IN respect of the prison offence of not surrendering for 799 days, a Jail Khatla was held and the Superintendent of Jail had passed an order punishing the petitioner-Prisoner for the prison offence of late surrender by 799 days by imposing punishment of cut of remission (excluding state remission) for four days per day of late surrender and if the present remission was not sufficient, it was directed to be recovered from remissions likely to be earned by the said convict in future. Total cut of remission was of 799 x 4 = 3196 days and punishment of forfeiture of surety amount of Rs. 500. 00 and recovery of amount of Rs. 500. 00 of personal bond was also imposed.

( 6 ) AS per Rule 1285 of the Bombay Jail Manual, punishment of forfeiture of remission in excess of 15 days is required is to be confirmed by the Inspector General of Prisons and the Inspector General of Prisons had confirmed the same by his order dated 22-2-1989 with a modification and the punishment for overstay of 799 days was reduced from 3196 days to 906 days etc. and this order came to be challenged by way of Special criminal Application No. 347 of 1989 which was allowed by the Division bench by its judgment dated 9-2-1990 on the ground that the Inspector General of Prisons, while confirming the order, had not given an opportunity of hearing to the petitioner and the Inspector General of Prisons was directed to proceed further with the proposal of punishment made by the Superintendent of Jail in accordance with law and the decision was to be taken before 16/03/1990.

( 7 ) THEREUPON, the petitioner was heard by the Inspector General of Prisons and ultimately he passed the order dated 16/03/1990 (Anne-xure g to the petition) and did not confirm the cut of remission of 3196 days reducing it to the cut of 906 days which was the remission earned by the petitioner upto that date and he also further directed that the petitioner shall be debarred from getting any remission in future and also confirmed the order of forfeiture of deposit and the surety amount.

( 8 ) THE learned Counsel for the petitioner has challenged this order on the following grounds : (i) That the petitioner is a convict of Maharashtra and the Government of maharashtra has passed the order of release of the petitioner on completion of 16 years imprisonment including all remissions on 15-1-1987 at Annexure c and the petitioner is governed by Maharashtra Prisons Rules and Maharashtra jail Manual and the only