Gauhati High Court
Puni Ram Nath @ Koniram Nath vs The State Of Assam And Anr on 25 June, 2024
Author: Manish Choudhury
Bench: Manish Choudhury
Page No.# 1/7
GAHC010031702024
THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT
(HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH)
Case No. : I.A.(Crl.)/168/2024
PUNI RAM NATH @ KONIRAM NATH
SON OF LATE PANI RAM NATH, RESIDENT OF MIKIRBHETA, POLICE
STATION MIKIRBHETA, DISTRICT-MORIGOAN, ASSAM. PIN-782413
VERSUS
THE STATE OF ASSAM AND ANR
REP. BY THE PP, ASSAM
2:BIPIN CHANDRA NATH
S/O LATE PEPALU NATH
R/O- PATKOMOI
P.S.-MORIGOAN
DISTRICT- MORIGOAN
ASSAM. PIN-782105
Advocate for the Petitioner : MR D K BHATTACHARYYA
Advocate for the Respondent : PP, ASSAM
BEFORE
HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE MANISH CHOUDHURY
HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ROBIN PHUKAN
ORDER
25.06.2024 [M. Choudhury, J.] Heard Mr. D.K. Bhattacharyya, learned counsel for the applicant - appellant and Ms. A. Begum, learned Additional Public Prosecutor for the opposite party, State of Assam.
Page No.# 2/7
2. The applicant herein is the appellant in the accompanying appeal, Criminal Appeal no. 16/2024. The accompanying appeal, Criminal Appeal no. 16/2024 is preferred by the applicant - appellant under Section 374[2] of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 ['the Code' or 'CrPC', for short] to assail a Judgment and Order dated 20.09.2017 passed by the Court of learned Sessions Judge, Morigaon in Sessions Case no. 57/2016. By the Judgment and Order dated 20.09.2017, the applicant - appellant has been convicted for the offence of murder under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code ['IPC', for short] and he has been sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for life and also to pay a fine of Rs. 50,000/-, in default of payment of fine, to undergo simple imprisonment for another 1 [one] year.
3. The accompanying appeal has already been admitted for hearing on 29.01.2024. Thus, the appeal is pending for hearing.
4. The instant interlocutory application is preferred under Section 389, CrPC seeking suspension of the execution of sentence passed against the applicant - appellant and for his release on bail. The applicant - appellant is presently lodged in District Jail, Morigaon.
5. In this application, it is averred that the applicant - appellant who is aged about 47 years, is a patient of Schizophrenia and has been undergoing treatment for the same for a considerable length of time. The applicant - appellant has been recommended medication for Schizophrenia, an illness, according to the applicant - appellant, is a mental illness.
6. With the aforesaid projection, it has been canvassed that the applicant - appellant, during the pendency of the accompanying appeal, is either to be granted the benefit of suspension of execution of the sentence and bail under Section 389 of the Code or his case should be considered as per the provisions of the Mental Healthcare Act, 2017 ['the Act, 2017' or '2017 Act', for short], the Prisoners Act, 1900 and Assam Prisons Act, 2013.
7. From the materials on record, it has emerged that the applicant - appellant was examined on 08.06.2024 by a Medical Board constituted by the Principal-cum-Chief Page No.# 3/7 Superintendent, Nagaon Medical College & Hospital, Nagaon. In the Mental Health Status Report submitted the Medical Board, it is opined that the applicant - appellant is suffering from a mental illness, namely, Paranoid Schizophrenia, in partial remission.
8. The Act, 2017 has been enacted to provide for mental healthcare and services for persons with mental illness and to protect, promote and fulfill the rights of such persons during delivery of mental healthcare and services and for matters connected therewith or incidental therewith. As per sub-section [o] of Section 2 of the Act, 2017, "mental healthcare"
includes analysis and diagnosis of a person's mental condition and treatment as well as care and rehabilitation of such person for his mental illness or suspected mental illness. As per sub-section [s] of Section 2 of the Act, 2017, "mental illness" means a substantial disorder of thinking, mood, orientation or memory that grossly impairs judgment, behaviour, capacity to recognise reality or ability to meet the ordinary demands of life, mental conditions associated with the abuse of alcohol and drugs, but does not include mental retardation which is a condition of arrested or incomplete development of mind of a person, specially characterised by sub-normality of intelligence. As per sub-section [w] of Section 2 of the Act, 2017, "prisoner with mental illness" means a person with mental illness who is an under-trial or convicted of an offence and detained in a jail or prison. Sub-section [d] of Section 2 of the Act, 20174 has provided for constitution of a Mental Health Review Board. As per the said sub-s,ection, "board" means the Mental Health Review Board constituted by the State Authority.
9. Section 73 of Chapter XI of the Act, 2017 has prescribed for constitution of Mental Health Review Board. For ready reference, Section 73 is quoted herein below in its entirety :-
73. Constitution of Mental Health Review Boards -
[1] The State Authority shall, by notification, constitute Boards to be called the Mental Health Review Boards, for the purposes of this Act.
[2] The requisite number, location and the jurisdiction of the Boards shall be specified by the State Authority in consultation with the State Government concerned.
[3] The constitution of the Boards by the State Authority for a Page No.# 4/7 district or group of districts in a State under this section shall be such as may be prescribed by the Central Government. [4] While making rules under Sub-Section [3], the Central Government shall have regard to the following, namely :-
[a] the expected or actual workload of the Board in the State in which such Board is to be constituted;
[b] number of mental health establishments existing in the State;
[c] the number of persons with mental illness;
[d] population in the district in which the Board is to be constituted;
[e] geographical and climatic conditions of the district in which the Board is to be constituted.
Section 74 has provided for composition of the Mental Health Review Board.
10. Section 103 of the Act, 2017 read as under :-
[1] An order under Section 30 of the Prisoners Act, 1900 [3 of 1900] or under Section 144 of the Air Force Act, 1950 [45 of 1950], or under Section 145 of the Army Act, 1950 [46 of 1950], or under Section 143 or Section 144 of the Navy Act, 1957 [62 of 1957], or under Section 330 or Section 335 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 [2 of 1974], directing the admission of a prisoner with mental illness into any suitable mental health establishment, shall be sufficient authority for the admission of such person in such establishment to which such person may be lawfully transferred for care and treatment therein:
Provided that transfer of a prisoner with mental illness to the psychiatric ward in the medical wing of the prison shall be sufficient to meet the requirements under this Section. Provided further that where there is no provision for a psychiatric ward in the medical wing, the prisoner may be transferred to a mental health establishment with prior permission of the Board. [2] The method, modalities and procedure by which the transfer of a prisoner under this Section is to be effected shall be such as may be prescribed.
[3] The medical officer of a prison or jail shall send a quarterly report to the concerned Board certifying therein that there are no prisoners with mental illness in the prison or jail. [4] The Board may visit the prison or jail and ask the medical officer as to why the prisoner with mental illness, if any, has been kept in the prison or jail and not transferred for treatment to a mental health establishment.
Page No.# 5/7 [5] The Medical Officer In - Charge of a Mental Health Establishment wherein any person referred to in Sub-Section [1] is detained, shall once in every six months, make a special report regarding the mental and physical condition of such person to the authority under whose order such person is detained.
[6] The appropriate Government shall setup mental health establishment in the medical wing of at least one prison in each State and Union territory and prisoners with mental illness may ordinarily be referred to and cared for in the said mental health establishment.
[7] The mental health establishment setup under Sub-Section [6] shall be registered under this Act with the Central of State Mental Health Authority, as the case may be and shall conform to such standards and procedures as may be prescribed.
11. A set of Rules, namely, the Mental Healthcare [Rights of Persons with Mental Illness] Rules, 2018 ['the Rules, 2018' or '2018 Rules', for short] have been framed in exercise of the powers conferred under Section 121 of the Act. As per Rule 10 thereof is of import and the same is quoted herein below :-
10. Method, modalities and procedure for transfer of prisoners with mental illness - Transfer of a prisoner with mental illness to the psychiatric ward of the medical wing of the prison or to a mental health establishment set up under sub-Section [6] of Section 103 or to any other mental health establishments within or outside the State shall be in accordance with the instructions issued by the Central Government or State Government, as the case may be.
12. The Assam Prisoners Act, 2013 ['the Act, 2013' or '2013 Act', for short] is an Act enacted prior to enactment of the 2017 Act, has also cast an obligation, under sub-Section [2] of Section 8, on the State Government to appoint psychologist or psychoanalyst and psychiatrist, as may be deemed for the prisons of the State. Section 52 of thereto has provided for the procedure for providing healthcare of an inmate of unsound mind. Section 82 of the Act, 2013 has provided for the modalities of the transferring a convicted person, who is certified to be of unsound mind, to a Mental Hospital etc.
13. It is has been brought to the notice of this court that by a Notification bearing No. HMB.103/2019/311 dated 29.11.2021, the Government of Assam in the Home [B] Department has already constituted Committees in terms of Section 8[2] of the Act, 2013, for Page No.# 6/7 conducting the mental health checkup of the inmates of the District Jails/Central Jail/Open Air Jail/Special Jail/Sub Jail, mentioned therein, for sending quarterly reports on the Mental Health of the inmates to the jurisdictional Mental Health Review Boards constituted by the Heath Department, Assam for the purpose. As per the said Notification, a Committee has also been constituted in the District Jail, Morigaon which is headed by the Additional Deputy Commissioner [Health] Morigaon as the Chairman with the Medical & Health Officer [Regular/Visiting] of the Jail as the Member Convener. The Superintendents of the District Jails and other concerned authorities are directed by a Notification bearing no. PRI.29/2019/58 dated 23.12.2021 of the Inspector General of Prisons, Assam to conduct regular mental health checkup of the inmates in jails of Assam and to act in close coordination with the Mental Health Review Board of the jails for successful implementation of the provisions of the 2017 Act.
14. It is also brought to the notice of this court that the Mental Health Review Board, Kamrup [Metro] is, at present, having jurisdiction over the jails in the districts of Kamrup [Metro], Morigaon, Nalbari and Karbi Anglong.
15. The Mental Health Status Report, submitted by the Medical Board constituted by the Principal-cum-Superintendent, Nagaon Medical College & Hospital, on 08.06.2024, has inter-alia reported as under :-
Based on the examination, information available and analysis of the medical records, the medical board opines that the index patient, Sri Puniram Nath @ Koniram Nath is suffering from a mental illness, namely, paranoid schizophrenia, in partial remission. By nature, the mental illness renders the judgment of the person poor. This condition is manageable with medications, but the long-term prognosis is uncertain. Due to lack of historical information, the board is not able to comment about the duration of his illness.
16. In view of such observations made by the Medical Board constituted to examine the mental health of the applicant - appellant by the Nagaon Medical College & Hospital, Nagaon, we deem it proper to direct the Mental Health Checkup Committee of the District Jail, Morigaon to place the case of the applicant - appellant viz. Puniram Nath @ Koniram Nath Page No.# 7/7 before the jurisdictional Mental Health Review Board at the earliest for consideration of the case of the applicant - appellant under Section 103 of the 2017 Act within 15 [fifteen] days from today, along with all the relevant records including the medical reports of the applicant - appellant.
17. It is further observed that on receipt of the case records from the Mental Health Checkup Committee, the jurisdictional Mental Health Review Board shall give due consideration to the case of the applicant - appellant on its own merits and in accordance with law. It is expected that the jurisdiction Mental Health Review Board will give consideration to the case of the applicant - appellant and will pass appropriate direction with utmost expedition.
18. With the above observations and directions, the instant interlocutory application, at this stage, stands disposed of.
19. A copy of this order be furnished to Ms. A. Begum, learned Additional Public Prosecutor to take necessary steps from her end.
JUDGE JUDGE Comparing Assistant