Kochi: The Kerala High Court has granted leave to a man incarcerated in Viyyur Central jail for undergoing IVF treatment.
Single Judge Bench of Justice P V Kunhikrishnan allowed the life convict, who has been behind bars for the past seven years, parole so that he could have a child through In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) treatment. The man's wife had moved the court for his temporary release.
The court wondered how could it turn a blind eye to such genuine requests merely on technicalities. "...When a wife comes before this court with a request that she wants a child with her husband who is undergoing imprisonment... this court cannot ignore the same on technicalities. Conviction and sentence in criminal cases is mainly to reform and rehabilitate the offenders... A person who has undergone a sentence in a criminal case need not be treated as a different person when he comes out. He has every right to lead a decent life just like any other citizen," the court observed.
Though the public prosecutor opposed the plea, and argued that the convict was not eligible for leave at present, the court ascertained the genuineness of the petitioner's request from the certificate issued by the hospital.
Citing the decision of the Rajasthan High Court in a similar case, the court granted the man 15 days of leave to undergo treatment.
(With inputs from Live Law)
