The Madras High Court on February 7, 2019, in the case of R. Vivek v. State, has granted parole to a man on the ground of attending his son’s engagement.
The order was passed by Justice N. Seshasayee on a writ petition filed by the son under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, to issue a writ of mandamus directing the respondents to grant parole to his father who was undergoing one year imprisonment for an offence punishable under Section 7 and 13(2) r/w 13 (1) (d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.
The government, opposing the plea, submitted before the court that as per the Prison Manual Rule 6, parole could be granted only on limitation grounds and attending engagement of his son was not one of the grounds.
However, the court rejected the submission and said that “Life of law is not logic to experience and life itself is having full of emotions and sentiments. This Court seeks no reason why the father should attend an engagement ceremony of his son and this is an opportunity for him to visit the family in his life.
Sometime one needs to expand certain expressions in law to give the meaning to life of citizens. Hence, rather than administrating law in terms of letter, this Court is inclined to give Parole to the petitioner's father.”
With this view, the court directed the Superintendent Central Prisons to grant parole to the petitioner’s father.
