1,200 prisoners in Uttar Pradesh may be freed soon

Lucknow, Nov 25 (IANS) About 1,200 prisoners, lodged in various jails of Uttar Pradesh, may soon be able to enjoy freedom from the confinement, officials said Tuesday, adding a proposal to release them is underway.

'We have got nearly 1,200 such appeals pending before the authorities of various district jails in the state and the government has directed us to forward the applications within a month,' Inspector General (Uttar Pradesh Jails) Sulkhan Singh told reporters in Faizabad.

He said applications have been selected on the basis of prisoners' behaviour and health.

Singh, who attended a review meeting of the jails, said: 'I have instructed the jail officials to complete the process at the earliest'.

The list of 1,200 prisoners, among them 200 women, comes under the category of mercy petition, probationers and forgiveness of punishment.

'The governor of the state is the authority to take decision on mercy appeals under Article 160 of the Constitutionm, and in the cases of release on probation, decisions are taken by district officials based on the report submitted by the concerned jail administration,' he explained.