HC expresses shock over state ‘violating’ rights of convict ordered to be released after 36yrs in jail

Kolhapur: After 36 years in jail, Ronald Alvares (65), a rape and murder convict, finally walked out of Kolhapur's Kalamba central jail on May 3 following the Kolhapur bench of the Bombay high court's direction for his "immediate release" as the state failed to comply with the HC's earlier order of March 7 directing his release."This is a shocking case," the bench of Justice Madhav Jamdar and Justice Pravin S Patil said, noting that the March 7 order sought Alvares's release upon completion of 30 years of imprisonment, including remission. "In fact, the petitioner (Alvares) has completed 31 years of actual imprisonment, and in total has undergone 36 years of imprisonment including remission. The said order dated 7th March 2026 has not been complied with till date," the bench said."The conduct of Respondent No. 1 – State of Maharashtra is in violation of the fundamental rights of the petitioner guaranteed under Article 21 (right to life and personal liberty) of the Constitution of India," the bench said while noting that 53 days have elapsed since the March 7 order and the state has neither filed an SLP in the Supreme Court against the order nor had complied with its order yet. This was after the govt's counsel told the bench that the state had granted permission to challenge the March 7 order before the SC.A district and sessions court in Pune had convicted Alvares and two others in 1992 in the murder of a couple and their son, robbery and rape of a woman during this crime. The court pronounced a death sentence for the three convicts and the Bombay high court confirmed the same in 1996. The Supreme Court, however, commuted the death sentence to life imprisonment, which implied jail for 30 years.The state govt on Sept 19, 2025, issued an order imposing an additional 10 years of consecutive jail term for the offence under section 376(2)(g) (i.e. gang rape) on his completion of the 30-year life sentence with remission. Alvares moved the HC against this. The high court upheld the state's position to release Alvares on completion of 30-year jail including remission but said the additional 10 years of imprisonment was unsustainable, erroneous and needed to be set aside in the wake of a Supreme Court ruling on life sentences. The HC had then disposed of the petition on March 7 by directing Alvares's release.
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