New Delhi/Chandigarh: The Delhi High Court on Thursday (22 January 2026) issued directions to the concerned authorities to communicate a decision on the parole application of Sikh political prisoner Bhai Jagtar Singh Hawara within four weeks.

Justice Prateek Jalan passed the order while disposing of a writ petition filed by Bhai Hawara, who is currently lodged in Central Jail No. 15, Mandoli, New Delhi. The petition highlighted that his parole application, submitted on June 11, 2025 to the Superintendent of Mandoli Jail, had remained undecided for more than seven months.

During the hearing, the State submitted that the Superintendent of Mandoli Jail was not the competent authority to decide the parole request, as Bhai Hawara was convicted by a court in Chandigarh, and therefore the matter would fall under the jurisdiction of the Chandigarh Administration. Counsel for Bhai Hawara disputed this position but emphasized that, irrespective of jurisdictional issues, the authorities were duty-bound to respond to the application in a timely manner so that appropriate legal remedies could be pursued.

Taking note of the submissions, the High Court directed the respondent authorities to communicate their response on the parole request to Bhai Hawara as well as to his counsel within four weeks from the date of the order. The Court clarified that all legal rights and remedies of the petitioner remain open and that the order does not preclude the parties from raising their respective submissions at a later stage. A copy of the order has also been directed to be sent to the concerned Jail Superintendent for compliance.

The case in the Delhi High Court was argued on behalf of Bhai Jagtar Singh Hawara by Senior Advocate Maninder Singh, along with Advocates Aekta Vats and Janvi Garg.

Sharing details of the development, Advocate Jaspal Singh Manjhpur, chief of Panjaab Lawyers—who maintains list of Sikh political prisoners and pursues their legal cases—said the High Court’s directions require the authorities to take a clear decision on the pending parole application and formally inform both the prisoner and his legal team.

Notably, parole is governed by prison rules and is generally initiated and processed by the jail authorities where the prisoner is undergoing imprisonment, subject to approval by the competent government authority.