The Delhi High Court has granted relief to Sagir, a man sentenced to life imprisonment in 2003 for the kidnapping, rape, and murder of an 8-year-old girl. Justice Girish Kathpalia quashed the Sentence Review Board’s (SRB) decision rejecting his plea for premature release, observing that justice must aim for reformation, not indefinite punishment.
Sagir had been in jail for over 24 years, including remission, and over 20 years and eight months without remission. Despite the gravity of his crime, the Court stressed that punishment must not turn into a “non-productive” and “endless incarceration.”
"Purpose of punishment has to be reformation of the criminal and not an endless, meaningless incarceration,"
— Justice Girish Kathpalia
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The convict’s plea was reviewed under the Delhi government’s 2004 policy on premature release. However, Sagir challenged the SRB’s rejection as unreasoned and mechanical. Supporting this argument, the prosecution too admitted its inability to justify the SRB’s decision, citing the absence of relevant considerations.
Justice Kathpalia noted that while the SRB had mentioned considering reports from the police and social welfare departments, neither were these reports presented in court nor was any summary included in the decision.
"Even the policy of 2004 has various parameters on which the case of a convict has to be tested... it is not possible to make out whether those parameters were applied or not,"
— Delhi High Court
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The Court also highlighted that the only factor SRB appeared to rely on was the gruesome nature of the original crime, overlooking other essential aspects required by policy and law.
Referring to the earlier case Vikram Yadav vs. State Govt. of NCT of Delhi, the petitioner’s counsel argued that necessary criteria laid down in that judgment were ignored in Sagir's case.
In response, the prosecution assured the Court that the matter could be reconsidered fairly in the next SRB meeting scheduled within four months.
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Consequently, the High Court set aside the SRB’s decision dated December 4, 2024, which had accepted the board’s August and September recommendations against Sagir.
“Respondent No.1 is directed to reconsider the case of the petitioner by convening an SRB meeting within four months from today.”
— Delhi High Court Order, July 8, 2025
The Court directed the Jail Superintendent to inform the petitioner of the decision.
Title: SAGIR v. STATE (NCT OF DELHI) & ORS