Delhi HC Sends Santosh Singh's Case Back to SRB for Review

New Delhi, Jul 1 (PTI) — In a significant development, the Delhi High Court has overturned the Sentence Review Board's (SRB) decision to reject the plea for the premature release of Santosh Kumar Singh, who is serving a life sentence for the 1996 rape and murder of law student Priyadarshini Mattoo.

Justice Sanjeev Narula, noting signs of reformation in Singh, has sent the case back to the SRB for fresh consideration of the convict's premature release plea. "I have found some element of reformation in him. The SRB decision is set aside and I have referred back the matter to SRB to consider it afresh," the judge declared while delivering the verdict.

The court has also established certain guidelines for the SRB to adopt when reviewing prisoners' pleas, stressing the importance of psychological assessments, which were absent in this instance. A comprehensive judgment is awaited.

In his 2023 application, Singh sought the annulment of the SRB's recommendation from a meeting on October 21, 2021, which denied his premature release.

Senior advocate Mohit Mathur, representing Singh, argued that the convict had served 25 years, including remission, for the murder conviction. Mathur emphasized Singh's satisfactory conduct, indicating his reformation and diminished potential for re-offending. The court was informed of Singh's time in open jail, further suggesting his potential contribution to society.

Earlier, it was brought to the court's attention that another SRB meeting on September 18, 2024, also denied Singh's plea for premature release.

Priyadarshini Mattoo was tragically raped and murdered at the age of 25 in January 1996. Initially acquitted by the trial court on December 3, 1999, Singh was found guilty upon the Delhi High Court's review on October 27, 2006, resulting in a death penalty sentence.

Santosh Kumar Singh, the son of a former IPS officer, contested his conviction and the death penalty. In October 2010, the Supreme Court upheld his conviction but reduced the death sentence to life imprisonment.