CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has ordered release of a visually impaired elderly prisoner on bail from the Puzhal Central Prison.
A division bench of Justices SM Subramaniam and M Jothiraman passed the orders on Thursday to release 87-year-old S Rajamani who has been incarcerated since 2013 following his conviction and imposition of life sentence in a murder case. The bench also directed the authorities concerned to hand him over to a home run by the Prison Ministry, an NGO.
The orders were passed on a petition filed by advocate P Pugalenthi, director of Prisoners Rights Forum. He said he had met octogenarian when he visited the Puzhal prison. The elderly man has served more than 10 years in jail and is eligible for premature release under the Rule 631 of Tamil Nadu Prison Rules, 1983 but the respondent authorities did not place the matter before the medical board for premature release, the petitioner said.
He added that he made a representation to the authorities in October last year seeking action to release Rajamani on medical grounds but the respondents have not taken any steps.