The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the Uttar Pradesh government to consider releasing convicts in appropriate cases as 7,214 of them remained incarcerated for the last 10 years in view of pendency of their appeals in the Allahabad High Court.
A bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Hrishikesh Roy asked the state government to take some actions to ensure the release of the convicts as there was inordinate delay in hearing appeals at the High Court.
The court issued notice to Allahabad High Court in a batch of pleas seeking bail, for setting out broad guidelines to expedite hearing in such matters.
The top court had earlier decided to lay down broad parameters that could be considered by Allahabad High Court while granting bail where the convicts were in jail, pending consideration of their appeals. It suggested considering factors like the period undergone, the heinousness of the crime, the age of the convicts, the period taken in the trial, and whether the appellants were diligently pursuing the appeals.
The UP government, for its part, said as many as 1,71,491 criminal appeals since 2000 have been filed in the High Court, which disposed of 31,044 cases. It also pointed out that the High Court was functioning with 93 judges out of a sanctioned strength of 160 judges.
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