Bihar government tweaks jail rules, sets free murder convict-politician Anand Mohan

Mohan, 69, was convicted in 2007 in the murder of the Gopalganj district magistrate G Krishnaiah in 1994. He was convicted for inciting a mob that was leading a protest march in Vaishali against the killing of muscleman Chhotan Shukla. Krishnaiah happened to cross the protest march route and was lynched by the mob.

Prior to the amendment in Bihar Police Jail Manuals, 2012, convicts completing 14 years’ sentence were not treated as ones having completed a life sentence because of the grievous nature of the crimes they had committed. These convicts had to spend at least 20 years in jail to qualify as having served a life sentence.

Bihar Law Department Secretary Ramesh Chandra Malviya, in his order on 24 April, said: “The state government has decided to set free those who have completed 14 years of their sentence on recommendation the State Sentence Remission Council made its meeting on 20 April”.

The law department order, however, does not elaborate on any other specific reasons for its decision. While several of the 27 convicts being released have been asked to register their regular attendance with the local police, no such condition has been put forward for Anand Mohan in the law department’s order.

On April 10 this year, the state home department had amended the Bihar Police Jail Manuals’ Rule No. 481 (1) (a) by dropping just five words .. “a civil servant on duty”, which later facilitated the release of Mohan and others.

Rule 481(i)(a) says: “Every convicted prisoner, whether male or female, undergoing sentence of life imprisonment and covered by the provisions of Section 433A CrPC, shall be eligible to be considered for premature release only after undergoing imprisonment for 20 years, including remissions:

a) Convicts who have been imprisoned for life for murder in heinous cases, such as murder with rape, murder with dacoity, murder involving an offence under the Protection of Civil Rights Act 1955, murder for dowry, murder of a child below 14 years of age, multiple murders, murder committed after conviction while inside the prison, murder during parole, murder in a terrorist incident, murder in smuggling operation, murder of a public servant on duty.”

JD (U) MLC and former minister Neeraj Kumar told The Indian Express: “First, let us make it clear that the order is not meant to benefit any individuals”.

A home department official told The Indian Express: “There are at least over a half dozen people over 75 years of age, one of them is 93 years. On the lower age group side, there are also convicts from the mid-20s to 50s age group. The idea to set them free was because of poor health conditions of the aged prisoners and also to give a second chance to the younger lot”.

Other convicts of heinous crimes benefiting from the government order include Dasgir Khan (75), Pappu Singh alias Rajiv Ranjan Singh (43), Ashok Yadav (46), Rajballabh Yadav alias Bijli Yadav (82), Shivji Yadav (420, Kirath Yadav (65), Collector Paswan (40), Kishundev Rai (65), Surendra Sharma (68), Devnandan Nonia (49), Rampravesh Singh (69), Vijay Singh (59), Ramadhar Ram (50), Patiram Ram (93), Hridaynarayan Sharma (55), Manoj Prasad (67), Panchadand Paswan (43), Jitendar Singh (78), Bindeshwari Yadav (83), Khelawan Yadav (85), Allauddin Ansari (42), Mohammed Khudbuddin (36), Sikandar Mahto (44) and Awadhesh Mandal (42).