Case Law
Subject : Criminal Law - Criminal Procedure
Kochi
, Kerala:
The High Court of Kerala, in a significant ruling, has reiterated that when a person already undergoing a life sentence is subsequently sentenced to imprisonment for a term, the subsequent sentence will automatically run concurrently with the life sentence by virtue of
The decision came in the case of ALI @ ALIYAR vs STATE OF KERALA (Crl.MC 5468/2024), where the petitioner, a life convict, was denied ordinary prison leave due to a misinterpretation of this legal provision by prison authorities.
The petitioner, Ali @ Aliyar, has been serving a life sentence for the past 13 years. During this period, he was convicted in two separate cases under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (NDPS Act), and in one instance, also for a prison offence. The subsequent judgments did not specify whether these new sentences would run concurrently with his ongoing life sentence.
This omission led prison authorities, citing a 2023 amendment to Rule 7 of the Kerala Prisons and Correctional Services (Management) Rules, 2014, to deny the petitioner ordinary leave. Their stance was that the sentences for the NDPS Act offences were running consecutively and had not expired, thus rendering him ineligible for leave. Had the sentences been treated as concurrent, the petitioner would have been eligible for consideration for ordinary leave.
This situation brought a critical question before the High Court: "A person already undergoing a sentence of imprisonment for life, if subsequently sentenced to imprisonment for a term, would the subsequent sentence run concurrently or consecutively, in the absence of a specific direction in the judgment?"
Adv.
The petitioner, represented by Sri.
The court's analysis centered on
Justice
Thomas
highlighted the crucial distinction: > "As per
The Court referred to established Supreme Court and High Court jurisprudence:
**
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Justice Thomas expressed disappointment that despite settled law, prison authorities failed to apply this principle. The judgment noted with concern: > "Unfortunately, despite this Court having earlier itself, specifically observed that a declaration is not necessary, the prison authorities have not taken the said proposition of law into reckoning. All the more disheartening is the circumstance that when a letter was issued by the prisoner to the District Judge, pointing out his entitlement, which letter was forwarded to the Registry of this Court, the prisoner was directed to knock at the doors of this Court on its judicial side to get such a declaration. Even the Registry of this Court failed to note the settled law on the issue. As correctly pointed out by the learned Amicus Curiae, the prisoner remains a helpless lot."
Allowing the petition, the High Court declared: > "it is declared that the sentence of imprisonment imposed upon the petitioner in the two subsequent crimes i.e. in C.C.No.346/2013 on the files of the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court-I, Manjeri and C.C. No.1112/2019 on the files of the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court-I, Kannur shall run concurrently with the sentence of imprisonment imposed in S.C. No.437/2009 on the files of the Additional Sessions Court-II, Manjeri."
The court recorded its deep appreciation for the assistance provided by Adv.
This judgment serves as a crucial reminder to prison authorities and the legal system about the automatic application of
#CrPC #SentencingLaw #LifeImprisonment #KeralaHighCourt
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