The state government on Tuesday informed the Bombay High Court that it is framing new guidelines for enhancing the sentences for MCOCA and POTA convicts besides those convicted under TADA. The court, however, expressed apprehension on the validity of such guidelines, without proper research and application of mind, as it defies the liberty of a person.

The observation came in response to petitions filed by the 1993 serial blasts convicts who face imprisonment up to 60 years or till they attain the age of 65 as per the government’s latest guidelines. Justifying the decision, additional public prosecutor Aruna Kamat Pai said they had gone through the role of each convict and the bomb blast convicts could not be treated on par with the other TADA convicts.

The Division Bench of Justice JN Patel and Justice Amjad Sayed said the state could not frame different guidelines for convicts as it would cause arbitrariness. It cited the example of TADA convict Abbas Mohammed Ali Shahji who was released in September after 30 years of imprisonment, the maximum period according to the state’s 1992 guidelines. Why didn’t the state not consider 60 years for him, Justice Patel asked.

He also pointed out that the charges of waging war against the state were dropped against the blast convicts. Citing the case of ’93 blast convict Dawood Phanse, who is over 84 years old, the court asked what would be the result if such a decision was passed against him. He was the only convict who met Dawood in Dubai. If not for his confessions, Dawood would not have been in the frame at all, he said.

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