The Delhi High Court recently extended the parole of a murder convict, Praveen Rana, by four weeks to allow him to save his farmland inundated due to recent floods.
Rana was released on parole on August 18 earlier this year. He approached the court in the same month and sought an extension, submitting that heavy rain had inundated his 1.5-acre field, destroying crops sown during his furlough in June.
Justice Arun Monga ordered on Monday, observing that the crops destroyed due to floods was an “act of God” and his family is totally dependent on the income from the farms for survival. It noted that without the active supervision of the convict, the farmland cannot be recovered effectively, jeopardising the survival and education of his dependent family members.
“The petitioner’s continued presence is not only unforeseen, being an act of God [heavy rains], but otherwise also appears to be necessary for sustaining his family’s only source of livelihood on which his widowed mother and two minor children, aged 14 and 15, are entirely dependent. With the water now receding, urgent measures are required to restore and protect the farmland, including financial arrangements and application of fertilisers, pesticides, and other essential inputs,” court said.
The court also clarified that the extension shall be treated as a second parole and will be factored accordingly in the jail manual.
Published – September 17, 2025 01:49 am IST
