⚖️Case Study: Abu Salem Extradition & Sentence Computation
📌Background
- Abu Salem extradited from Portugal (2005) under a sovereign assurance: no death penalty, no imprisonment beyond 25 years.
- Convicted in 2015 and 2017 under TADA, both sentences of life imprisonment, running concurrently.
🧩Issues Raised
- Whether Salem had already completed 25 years of incarceration.
- Whether jail-earned remission could reduce his sentence.
- Whether sovereign assurance converted life imprisonment into a fixed 25-year term.
🔎Court’s Observations
- Double-counting custody periods is impermissible.
- The 25-year stipulation was not a judicial modification but a commitment binding the Executive.
- Remission applies only to fixed-term sentences, not life imprisonment.
- Release consideration arises only after completion of 25 years (from 12 Oct 2005).
📝Conclusion
- Supreme Court upheld Bombay High Court’s dismissal of Salem’s writ petition.
- Appeal dismissed as premature; 25 years not yet completed.
- Court reaffirmed separation of powers and the binding nature of international sovereign assurances.
💡Key Takeaways
- Sovereign assurances in extradition bind the Executive, not Judiciary.
- Life imprisonment ≠ fixed-term sentence; remission rules differ.
- Custody computation must avoid overlapping periods.
- Case highlights balance between international commitments and domestic sentencing law.
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📌 Official Copy of judgement 👇