Republic Day 2023: 189 Maharashtra jail inmates released under special remission program

The Maharashtra Prisons Department announced last week that the Centre has decided to grant special remission to certain categories of prisoners based on their good behaviour during their term. 

On the occasion of the 74th Republic Day, nearly 189 prisoners were released from various Maharashtra prisons on Thursday, January 26, 2023. The state government has issued an order granting special remission to the 189 prisoners. 

A prisons department spokesperson said that the prisoners released included 35 from Nashik and Nagpur central prisons, 20 from Yerwada Central Jail in Pune, 16 from Taloja Central Jail in Navi Mumbai, 11 from Thane Central Jail, and four from Mumbai Central Prison (Arthur Road Jail).

To celebrate the Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, the Maharashtra Prisons Department announced last week that the Centre has decided to grant special remission to certain categories of prisoners based on their good behaviour during their term and release them on three occasions: August 15, 2022, January 26, 2023, and August 15, 2023.

The official said that the prisoners are picked based on their age, time in jail, disabilities, and health condition.

The 189 inmates include 16 who are 60 years old or older and have completed 50 per cent of their total sentence and 162 who have completed two-thirds (66 per cent) of their total sentence, jail officials added. Including ten of these prisoners are between the ages of 18 and 21 and have never committed any crime. The official explained that one prisoner is from a low-income family and could not be released due to non-payment of a fine imposed on them. 

The state has 60 jails, including nine central prisons. More than 40,000 people were imprisoned in these facilities as of November 2022.

(With inputs from PTI)