Mr. Hemant Gupta, J.: - This order shall dispose of aforementioned two criminal writ petitions challenging the legality and validity of definition of “Hardcore prisoner” as inserted in the Haryana Good Conduct Prisoners (Temporary Release) Act, 1988 (for short ‘the Act’). The Act was enacted to regulate the right of the convicts for release on parole or furlough.

2. Initially Clause (aa) was inserted in Section 2 by Haryana Good Conduct Prisoners (Temporary Release) Amendment Act 2012. The definition as inserted reads as under: “(aa) ‘hardcore prisoner’ means a person, who –

(i) has been convicted of dacoity, robbery, kidnapping for ransom, murder with rape, serial killing, contract killing, murder or attempt to murder for ransom or extortion, causing grievous hurt, death or waging or attempting to wage war against Government of India, buying or selling minor for purposes of prostitution or rape with a woman below sixteen years of age or such other offence as the State Government may, by notification, specify; or;

(ii) during any continuous period of five years has been convicted and sentenced to imprisonment twice or more for commission of one or more of offences mentioned in chapter XII or XVII of the Indian Penal Code, except the offences covered under clause (i) above, committed on different occasions not constituting part of same transaction and as a result of such convictions has undergone improvement at least for a period of twelve months;

Provided that the period of five years shall be counted backwards from the date of second conviction and while counting the period of five years, the period of actual imprisonment or detention shall be excluded.

Explanation – A conviction which has been set aside in appeal or revision and any imprisonment undergone in connection therewith shall not be taken into account for the above purpose; or

(iii) has been sentenced to death penalty; or

(iv) has been detected of using cell phone or in possession of cell phone/SIM card inside the jail premises; or

(v) failed to surrender himself within a period of ten days from the date on which he should have so surrendered on the expiry of the period for which he was released earlier under this Act.”

3. The said definition was subsequently amended vide Haryana Act No.21 of 2013 and later by Haryana Act No.16 of 2015, but it is the definition of “hardcore prisoner”, as is at present in Section 2(aa), which is subject matter of challenge in both the petitions, which reads as under:

“(aa) ‘hardcore prisoner’ means a person –

(i) who has been convicted of –

(1) robbery under section 392 or 394 IPC;

(2) dacoity under section 395, 396 or 397 IPC;

(3) kidnapping for ransom under section 364-A IPC;

(4) murder or attempt to murder for ransom or extortion under section 387 read with 302 or section 387 read with 307 IPC;

(5) rape with murder under section 376 read with 302 IPC;

(6) rape with a woman below sixteen years of age;

(7) rape as covered under section 376-A, 3376-D or 376-E IPC;

(8) serial killing i.e. murder under section 302 IPC in two or more cases in different First Information Reports;

(9) murder under section 302 IPC, if the offender is a contract killer as apparent from the facts mentioned in the judgment of the case;

(10) lurking house trespass or house breaking where death or grievous hut is caused under section 459 or 460 IPC;

(11) either of offence under sections 121 to 124-A IPC;

(12) immoral trafficking under section 3, 4 or 5 of the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956 involving minors or under section 366-A, 366-B, 372 or 373 IPC;

(13) offence under section 17(c) or 18(b) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985; or

(14) offence under section 14 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012

(ii) who during a period of five years immediately before his conviction has earlier been convicted and sentenced for commission of one or more offences mentioned in Chapter XII or XVII of IPC, except t