Parole is the conditional release of a prisoner before the end of their sentence, allowing them to serve the remainder of the sentence outside of prison but under supervision. It aims to help rehabilitate prisoners and ease their transition back into society. To be eligible for parole, a prisoner must have served a portion of their sentence, usually a third to a half, and be deemed low risk. While on parole, the released prisoner remains under the supervision of parole authorities. Parole can be revoked if conditions are violated. The goals of parole are rehabilitation of the offender and protection of society.

1. PRESENTED BY GURURAJ KULKARNI GUEST FACULTY PTC
KALBURAGI (GULBARGA)

2.  Parole is a major correctional process in jail reforms. It
is a part of consideration granted to the prisoners to
help them to come back into the mainstream of life.
 It is a tool for social rehabilitation of the prisoner.

3.  Parole is the conditional release of an offender who has
already served a portion of his sentence in a
correctional institution.
 While on parole, the released prisoner remains in the
custody and under the supervision of the paroling
authority.

4.  parole is essentially an executive function and
instances of release of detenues on parole were
literally unknown until this Court and some of the
High Courts in India in recent years made orders of
release on parole on humanitarian considerations.
 Historically ‘parole‘ is a concept known to military law
and denotes release of a prisoner of war on promise to
return.

5.  Parole has become an integral part of the English and
American systems of criminal justice intertwined
with the evolution of changing attitudes of the society
towards crime and criminals.
 As a consequence of the introduction of parole into
the penal system, all fixed term sentences of
imprisonment of above 18 months are subject to
release on licence, that is, parole after a third of the
period of sentence has been served.

6.  parole is taken as an act of grace and not as a matter of
right and the convict prisoner may be released on
condition that he abides by the promise. It is a
provisional release from confinement but is deemed to
be a part of the imprisonment.
 Release onparole is a wing of the reformative process
and is expected to provide opportunity status of the
prisoner.

7.  Rules are framed providing supervision
by parole authorities of the convicts released
on parole and in case of failure to perform the
promise, the convict released on parole is directed to
surrender to custody.

8.  The period of parole may be as long as the time the
prisoner would otherwise have served in the
institution or it may be terminated earlier.
 Walter Croflon advocated reform of the individual as a
purpose of imprisonment and moreover urged that
"Tickets of leave" be given to those who showed a
change in attitude.

9.  Parole ideally includes treatment in the form of
supervision, guidance and assistance.
 It has been rightly held that all released prisoners can
benefit from the guidance of parole officers, but the
benefit that society itself would derive if all prisoners
were kept under close surveillance during the period of
adjustment immediately following incarceration, is
also considerable.

10.  Parole gives a chance of reformation to the prisoner. It
can have a positive impact towards changing the
prisoner’s attitude to what they have done and make
them come to accept that their behavior was wrong

11.  Parole had its root in the Positivist School.
 The word ‘Parole’ comes from the French word “je
donne ma parole” meaning ‘I give my
 word’, while the dictionary definition is ‘word of
honour.
 The term ‘parole’ was first coined in a correctional
context in 1847 by Samvel G. Howe, a Boston penal
reformer.


12.  The Classical School of thought opined that people are
free to choose their own conduct.
 While committing any crime, an offender always
calculates his gain, his pleasure, at the cost of other’s
pain. So he must be punished.
 But the Positivist school argued that it is the
circumstance which forces anybody to commit crime.
So he must be rehabilitated.

13.  From there the thought of parole arose. It provides a
second chance to the prisoner to rehabilitate himself.
 The offender might have committed an offence, but it
is not desirable that he always be labeled and must not
be given any chance to rehabilitate himself.

14.  Its objectives are twofold: the rehabilitation of the
offender and the protection of society.
 It is a means of helping the inmate to become a law
abiding citizen, while at the same time ensuring that
he does not misbehave or return to crime.

15.  The paroling function may be important as a "safety
valve" to help control the levels of prison populations
in relation to capacities and thus to avert the dangers
and thus to avert the dangers and costs of over
crowding.

16.  In India, the grant of Parole is largely governed by the
rules made under the Prison Act, 1894 and Prisoner
Act, 1900.
 Each of the States has its own parole rules, which have
minor variations with each other .

17.  There are two types of parole custody and regular.
 The custody parole is granted in emergency
circumstances like death in the family, serious illness
or marriage in the family.
 Regular Parole is allowed for a maximum period of
one month, except in special circumstances, to
convicts who have served at least one year in prison.

18.  It is granted on certain grounds such as:
 Serious Illness of a family member.
 Accident or Death of a family member.
 Marriage of a member of the family.
 Delivery of Child by wife of the convict.
 Maintain family or social ties.
 Serious damage to life or property of the family of
convict by natural calamities.
 Pursue filing of a Special Leave Petition.

19.  Certain categories of convicts are of convicts are not
eligible for being released on parole like prisoners
involved in offences against the State, or threats to
national security, non-citizens of India etc.
 People convicted of murder and rape of children or
multiple murders etc. are also exempted except at the
discretion of the granting authority.

20.  Selection for parole is based on two separate
considerations.
 First one, more or less arbitrary because it is usually
fixed by statute.
 The second entirely discretionary involving a decision
and a calculated risk by the parole board.

21.  The First consideration is the offender's parole eligibility,
the second his suitability for parole.
 To these considerations which are explicit, there may be
added others which are no less decisive because they are
less tangible.
 Parole cannot be granted to every type of offender. The
purpose of parole is to bring about a change in the behavior
of the person sentenced and also at extraordinary
circumstances such as serious illness or death of near
relatives, death of the kith and kin and so forth.
 The offender paroled has to be kept under close
surveillance by the police so that he does not relapse into
the commission of crime.

22.  Even though the paroled offender is not in physical
confinement, for all practical purposes he is a person
sentenced and every of his movement of him has to be
closely monitored so that his associations and his
activities which perpetrate crime can be mitigated.

23.  1) The paroled person should hold the permit always
and should produce on being tendered by any police
officer or magistrate or any other competent authority.
 2) He shall not associate with notorious bad
characters, ruffians and anti-social elements.
 3) He shall not indulge in coercing any of the witnesses
or complainant to adduce evidence in his favor.

24.  4) He shall report any charge in the address or his
movement and leaving the locality or jurisdiction
which is specifically prescribed in his behalf.
 5) He shall also obey all laws and public ordinances.
 6) He shall not indulge in alcoholism, intoxicating
beverages and narcotics.

25.  In the view of Indian judicial system, parole is claimed
to be a success in rehabilitation and checking crime
attitude.
 Parole has been defined by Hon. Court as “a
conditional release of a prisoner, generally under
supervision of a parole officer, who has served part of
the term for which he was sentenced to prison”.
 Parole relates to executive action taken after the door
has been closed on a convict.

26.  In the matter of Sunilfulchandshaha V/S Union of
India
 During parole period there is no suspension of
sentence but the sentence is actually continuing to run
during that period also.

27.  Hon. court remarked that “It is not out of place to
mention that if the State takes up a flexible attitude it
may be possible to permit long spells of parole, under
controlled conditions, so that fear that the full
freedom if bailed out, might be abused may be
eliminated by this experimental measure, punctuated
by reversion to prison.

28.  In the matter of Babu Singh and others V/S State of
UP.
 Unremitting insulation in the harsh and hardened
company of prisoners leads to many unmentionable
vices that humanizing interludes of parole are part of
the compassionate constitutionalism of our system.”

29.  1. A convict seeks parole and files a petition regarding
the same.
 2. Jail authority (Superintendent) asks for a report
from the police station that had made the arrest.
 3. A report including all the necessary papers like case
history of the convict, his behaviour in the prison, his
medical report (in case of illness being a reason for
parole) are collected by Superintendent.

30.  4.The report is then sent to the Deputy Secretary,
Home (General), State Government who decides on
the application either accepting or rejecting it.

31.  In some states, the application of the parole along with
the detailed police report and recommendation is sent
to the Inspector General of the Prison, which is further
forwarded to the District Magistrate. The District
Magistrate along with the consultation of The State
Government takes the decision of either accepting or
rejecting the application of the Parole.

32.  Under SECTION: 56 of Karnataka Prisoners act 1963 reads
about Release on parole.
 (1) The State Government or any authority to which the
State Government may delegate its power in this behalf,
may, subject to such conditions as may be prescribed,
release on parole for such period as it may deem necessary,
any prisoner in case of any serious illness or death of any
member of the prisoner's family or of any of his nearest
relatives or for any other sufficient cause.
 (2) The period of release of a prisoner under sub--section
(1) shall not count towards the total period of his sentence.

33.  Parole and furlough are parts of the penal and prison
system for humanising prison administration but the
two have different purposes.
 Furlough is a matter of right but parole is not.
 Furlough is to be granted to the prisoner periodically
irrespective of any particular reason merely to enable
him to retain family and social ties and avoid ill-effects
of continuous prison life.

34.  The period of furlough is treated as remission of
sentence.
 Parole, on the other hand, is not a matter of right and
may be denied to a prisoner even when he makes out
sufficient case for release on parole if the competent
authority is satisfied on valid grounds that release of a
prisoner on parole would be against the interest of
society or the prison administration.