Mumbai: The Bombay High Court, on humanitarian grounds, suspended sentence and granted bail to a murder convict who suffered a paralytic stroke in June and directed that he be shifted to Janseva Foundation which will look after him as his family has refused to take his responsibility.
A division bench of Justices Revati Mohite-Dere and Gauri Godse on July 19 directed the Superintendent of Yerwada prison to shift him immediately from Sassoon Hospital, where he is currently admitted, to Janseva Foundation’s Old Age home.
Feb 2017 case
Banjara was arrested in a murder case in February 2017. He was convicted and sentenced to life in prison by sessions judge, Pune, in January this year. He has challenged this before the HC.
His advocate Pooja Agarwal argued that he had suffered a paralytic stroke in June following which he was shifted to Sassoon Hospital. The HC had called for his medical report, which confirmed his condition.
Additional public prosecutor Prajakta Shinde informed the HC that Banjara was shifted to Sassoon Hospital to enable the hospital to give a certificate as mandated for shifting him to ‘Kinara’ or any other NGO, as he is a convict.
During the hearing on July 19, Shinde said that Janseva Foundation, an NGO in Pune, has agreed to take care of Banjara at their organisation Ambi Phata home for the rest of his life.
“We make it clear that this order is passed in the peculiar facts of this case, on humanitarian grounds and also since Janseva Foundation has graciously accepted to look after the applicant,” the bench said.
The HC has kept the matter for hearing on September 13 for compliance.
