Overview
- A Supreme Court bench on Friday, May 15, struck down the Home Ministry’s July 9, 2025 refusal and approved premature release for Rohit Chaturvedi in the 2003 Madhumita Shukla murder case.
- The court said the harshness of a crime cannot be the only reason to deny remission, which looks at a prisoner’s conduct and chances of reintegration rather than past guilt.
- Justices B V Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan found the MHA’s letter to be a non-speaking order that gave no reasons, and they stressed that any decision curbing liberty must explain the grounds.
- The bench noted Chaturvedi’s more than 22 years in jail and a record of good conduct, and it pointed to parity since co-convict Amarmani Tripathi was released by Uttar Pradesh in August 2023 after about 17 years.
- Uttarakhand had backed release but sought central concurrence because the CBI investigated the case, and the court said Chaturvedi need not surrender since he was already on interim bail and should be treated as released.