National Legal Services Authority v. Union of India
Background
The National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) filed a writ petition under Article 32 raising concerns about elderly (above 70) and terminally ill convicted prisoners continuing to languish in Indian prisons despite deteriorating health and inadequate medical facilities. NALSA had conducted a nationwide "Special Campaign for Old Prisoners & Terminally Ill Prisoners" (December 2024-March 2025) that identified 5,393 such prisoners across the country, including 11 terminally ill and 84 above 70 years old spread across 17 states and a Union Territory, and sought their release subject to trial court satisfaction.
Decision Breakdown
The Court held that continued incarceration of elderly and terminally ill prisoners, without a structured release mechanism, is incompatible with the dignity guarantee under Article 21, while also recognizing that prison administration is constitutionally a state subject where courts must exercise restraint. Balancing these considerations, it issued detailed systemic directions under Articles 32 and 142: all States/UTs must, within three months, notify a policy for early/compassionate release of elderly and terminally ill prisoners with clear eligibility criteria, constitute Medical Boards to certify terminal illness, integrate the process with Under Trial Review Committees and the National e-Prisons Portal for transparency, and file compliance affidavits within six months. It did not order blanket release of any individual but built an institutional framework, using a model annexed as "Schedule A."
Lesson Learnt
Even where courts cannot directly legislate on a state subject like prison administration, they can use Article 32/142 to compel systemic policy reform where a whole category of vulnerable people's fundamental rights are being persistently violated by administrative inertia.