Delhi High Court: Denial of Parole to Perform Parent’s Last Rites Violates Article 21

The Delhi High Court has held that denial of parole to perform the last rites of one's parent is a violation of the right to dignity guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution.

The Court was dealing with the petition of a man convicted in a rape case, who sought two months of emergency parole to perform the last rites of his father, who died on September 19. 

The convict submitted that he had satisfactory jail conduct and had not availed a parole or furlough ever since he was incarcerated.

The Court, while granting him 4 weeks of parole, held that the right to perform the last rites of a parent is an essential religious practice and moral duty.

[Ajmer Singh alias Pinka v The State of NCT of Delhi]