Gawli is 71-72 years old, not what he was in 1980s, says SC

The Supreme Court on Monday said it would like to examine the plea of the Maharashtra government, challenging the remission granted to gangster-turned-politician Arun Gawli who is serving a life sentence in a murder case.

A bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan told senior advocate Raja Thakare, appearing for the Maharashtra government, "He is 71-72 years of age now. He is not the 1980s Arun Gawli when people used to talk about him. You have to satisfy us about the possibilities of the scale of crime by him."

Thakare said Gawli was an MLA, had been awarded life imprisonment and convicted under provisions of the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA).

"The crimes he has committed are not against individuals but against society. Law of remission is very clear that the gravity of offence has to be taken into account," he submitted.

Senior advocate Nitya Ramakrishnan, appearing for Gawli, said he is entitled to premature release under the 2006 policy of the state which was specifically framed for the benefit of prisoners who were of advanced age and physically weak.

She submitted that even the medical board has certified that Gawli is infirm due to his advanced age.

The bench said it would like to examine the issue and pointed out that earlier too Gawli was granted parole by the court and it was extended from time to time.

"You (Ramakrishnan) can file an application for parole, not bail, which we will consider on July 31 along with his appeal against the conviction. We are posting the petition of the state government to be heard along with the main appeal on July 31," the bench said.

It directed the continuation of its June 3 order putting a stay on the premature release of Gawli till further orders. The apex court asked the state government to file an affidavit giving details of the criminal antecedents of Gawli.

On June 3, the top court stayed the operation of the April 5 order of the Nagpur bench of the Bombay high court which directed the state authorities to consider Gawli's application for premature release under the 2006 remission policy.

It had issued notice to Gawli on the plea of the state government in the matter.

The Nagpur bench of the high court had allowed Gawli's plea in which he had sought direction to the state government for his premature release on account of the remission policy dated January 10, 2006, which was prevailing on the date of his conviction on August 31, 2012.

Gawli, who is undergoing life imprisonment for the 2007 murder of Mumbai Shiv Sena corporator Kamlakar Jamsandekar, has claimed to have complied with all the conditions of the 2006 policy.

The rejection of his application for premature release by the state authorities is unjust, arbitrary and is liable to be set aside, he said.

Gawli has contended that he is of advanced age and has been certified as weak by the medical board, making him eligible for availing the benefit of the remission policy.

The state government, however, opposed his plea before the high court, saying revised guidelines dated March 18, 2010, contemplates that there shall be no premature release of a convict of organised crime unless he undergoes 40 years of actual imprisonment.

The high court rejected the state government's submission, terming it "totally misconceived" and said the revised guidelines of 2010 were general in nature.

It had said the 2006 policy was specifically framed for the benefit of prisoners who were of advanced age and physically weak and the 2010 guidelines would not apply at all.

"In view of the discussion, we hold that the petitioner is entitled to the benefits flowing from the remission policy dated January 10, 2006, which was prevailing on the date of his conviction.

"We also hold that by applying the rule of ejusdem generis (of the same kind), convicts of the MCOC Act cannot be excluded from availing of the benefits of the said policy. Writ Petition is accordingly allowed," the high court had ordered.

The high court gave the Maharashtra government four weeks to pass a consequential order in that regard from the date of uploading the order.

However, on May 9, the state government again moved the high court seeking four months for the implementation of the April 5 order, saying they have challenged the verdict in the apex court.

In the May 9 order, the high court said, "It is informed that a special leave petition has been filed before the Supreme Court. The summer vacation of the Supreme Court would commence from May 20, 2024. By virtue of our order, the petitioner is required to be set free and if his release is postponed by a few months, it would curtail his liberty."

"However, as the special leave petition was filed/registered yesterday only, we deem it appropriate to grant some breathing time to the state to obtain necessary orders from the Supreme Court," the high court had said.

It gave the state government four more weeks for the implementation of the April 5 order setting Gawli free and made it clear that no more extensions would be granted.

Gawli, who shot into prominence from Dagdi Chawl, a neighbourhood of Byculla, is the founder of the Akhil Bharatiya Sena. He was an MLA from 2004-2009 from the Chinchpokli seat of Mumbai.

He was arrested in 2006 and was put on trial for the murder of Shiv Sena corporator Kamlakar Jamsandekar. In August 2012, a sessions court in Mumbai sentenced him to life imprisonment in the case and imposed a fine of Rs 17 lakh on him.