Bombay High Court grants parole to father for son's farewell, stresses importance of sharing happy occasions

Bombay High Court/ File Photo

The Bombay High Court has given Vivek Shrivastav parole to wave farewell to his son, who is departing for Australia to complete his education. The court emphasised that if parole can be granted to share sadness, it should also be permitted for pleasant events. In an order dated July 9, Justices Bharati Dangre and Manjusha Deshpande ruled that conditional parole helps convicts to retain links with the outside world and handle family concerns. Despite being in prison, a felon is still someone's son, spouse, father, or brother, reported PTI.

According to the report, the court's ruling came in response to Shrivastav's plea, which requested release to arrange tuition fees and other expenditures for his son's study at an Australian institution and to bid him farewell.

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The prosecution disputed the plea, claiming that parole is normally granted only in emergency conditions, not for organising funds for education or bidding farewell. The Supreme Court, however, disagreed with this rationale, the report added.

"Grief is an emotion, so is happiness, and if parole can be granted to share grief, why not to share a happy occasion or moment?" the court stated per PTI report.

The court further stated that if parole is granted to celebrate a marriage, it should be extended to Shrivastav so that he can arrange for his son's tuition and bid him farewell, the report added.

Reportedly, Shrivastav, who was convicted of murder in 2012 and has been serving a life sentence since 2018, requested a month's release to arrange for Rs 36 lakh in tuition and other expenses for his son.

The bench stressed that parole and furlough provisions are intended to assist offenders in maintaining family relationships and managing family affairs, as well as to alleviate the detrimental consequences of long-term prison life and maintain mental balance. The court granted Shrivastav release for 10 days, stating that the benefit of parole should not be denied for a happy occasion such as his son's departure to complete his education in Australia, the PTI report stated.

"Unless and until the father is available to arrange for this amount, his young son may lose a chance and the offer he has received," the court said. "We also feel that this is a moment to rejoice, when his son deserves a goodbye with best wishes from his father, and we do not intend that he should be kept away from this moment of pride."