New Delhi, Nov 13 (IANS) The Delhi High Court has ordered that an 81-year-old woman convict, who is bedridden and suffering from multiple ailments, be shifted to home confinement until the government decides her plea for premature release under the Delhi Prison Rules.

A single-judge Bench of Justice Amit Mahajan, while disposing of the petition filed by Kailash Wati seeking an extension of her parole, held that her medical condition made it impossible for her to surrender and undergo the remainder of her seven-year sentence.

“The Court cannot be so inhumane to adopt a callous approach which is blind and unfeeling to the plight of an aged woman,” Justice Mahajan observed, emphasising that despite her conviction for dowry death, the petitioner “is still a human being deserving of dignity.”

The petitioner, who was convicted along with her husband and son in 2000 for offences under Sections 498A and 304B of the IPC in a 1987 case, lost her son in 2015 and her husband in 2017.

The octogenarian, who suffered two major hip surgeries following a fall inside prison in 2017, has since remained on parole for medical reasons. In its decision, the Delhi High Court noted that she has been bedridden for years and “is not able to walk or perform her day-to-day activities without the help of an attendant.”

While acknowledging that the Delhi Prison Rules limit parole to a maximum of 16 weeks a year, Justice Mahajan held that directing her to surrender would be “blind to reality”, remarking: “She will not be able to undergo the remainder of her sentence, especially since the prison authorities will be unable to provide her with round-the-clock assistance or the suitable amenities required for her condition.”

It ordered that the petitioner be kept confined to her home under the care of her surviving son and said, “Interests of justice will be met if the petitioner is confined to her home till her case is considered for clemency or premature release.”

She has been directed to execute a personal bond of Rs 10,000 with two sureties and cannot leave the house“except for her medical treatment. The Delhi High Court also directed the city government to examine her case for premature release under Rule 1246A, introduced in 2024 to provide relief to incapacitated convicts above 70 years.

“The concerned authorities are directed to decide the case of the petitioner for premature release expeditiously, preferably within a period of four weeks,” observed Justice Mahajan.

Highlighting the larger issue of elderly convicts trapped in prolonged parole cycles due to their inability to surrender, the Delhi High Court asked the city government to amend the prison rules.

“It is incumbent on the appropriate authorities to frame rules covering such exigencies… where convicts, who are incapacitated by virtue of health or age, are not in a position to surrender even after lapse of the period of release on parole,” Justice Mahajan said.

–IANS

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