Life imprisonment cannot be reduced below 15 years through remission: FCCP

ISLAMABAD, Sep 30 (APP): The Federal Constitutional Court has held that under Rule 217(ii) of the Pakistan Prison Rules, 1978, the actual period of imprisonment of a life convict cannot be reduced below 15 years through accumulated remission.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Rozi Khan Barech and Justice Syed Arshad Hussain Shah made the observation while dismissing Federal Constitutional Court Petition for Leave to Appeal (FCPLA) filed by Saba Khan.

The court held that remission beyond the limits prescribed by law could not create an enforceable legal right.

The remission system had to be exercised strictly within the framework of the law and prison rules.

According to the judgment, general and special remissions under Rule 217 of the Pakistan Prison Rules could ordinarily not exceed one-third of the sentence. In the case of a life convict, however, remission could not reduce the actual period of imprisonment below 15 years.

Saba Khan had been sentenced to life imprisonment under Section 302. According to the nominal roll prepared by prison authorities on August 17, 2023, she had served nine years, four months and 19 days, while 15 years, seven months and 18 days of remission had been credited to her account, leaving only five months and 23 days of imprisonment.

The court held that this calculation was inconsistent with the mandatory requirements of the Pakistan Prison Rules, as it reduced the actual period of imprisonment below 15 years.

It observed that a life convict was required to undergo at least 15 years of actual imprisonment unless the sentence was formally altered by a competent authority under constitutional or statutory powers.

The court further held that remission was not an unlimited administrative discretion and had to be granted in accordance with the Pakistan Prison Rules, Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 and other relevant laws and orders. The petition was dismissed as being without merit.