Madras High Court grants parole to lifer to ‘procreate’

In an unusual case, the Madras High Court has granted a two-week parole to a life convict in the Palayamkottai Central Prison in southern Tamil Nadu''s Tirunelveli district so that he could have sex with his wife for the purpose of “procreation”. “It is time the Government constitutes a committee to consider possibilities of providing conjugal visits and analyse the merits and demerits of permitting conjugal visits,” a bench of Justices S Vimala Devi and T Krishna Valli said while granting parole to 40-yearold Siddique Ali on a habeas corpus petition filed by his 32-year-old wife. She had sought parole for him so that she could have a physical union and conceive. The court pointed out that the Central Government had already come up with the view that conjugal rights are a right and not privilege. Therefore prisoners should be entitled to conjugal visits as is followed in some countries. “The right of prisoners for conjugal visits has been recognised in a few countries. If prisons are overcrowded the government should find solution for such problems,” the judges said adding that such visits would help prisoners maintain relationship with families, “reduce recidivism” and serve as an incentive for good prisoners. “Reforming the prisoners is part of the correctional mechanism provided in the criminal justice,” the court said. “Providing for release of prisoner for the purpose of procreation of child with available law can be done. It can be interpreted as a request covered under extraordinary reason” the bench said adding that a medical examination has established that Ali was capable of fathering a child. Hence after medical treatment on his release on parole, an additional two weeks of leave could be considered for him. The court refused to accept the prison officials'' argument that Ali''s life was under danger and directed them to safeguard him during his parole by providing an escort in civil clothes.