The Delhi Government was, on Friday, asked by the Delhi High Court to respond to the plea of Siddharth Vashisht alias Manu Sharma, undergoing life term for killing model Jessica lall, seeking a month’s parole to appear in postgraduation exam scheduled to start from December 30.
Issuing a notice to the Government, Justice Hima Kohli sought a status report by December 18 on Sharma’s plea. Sharma, son of former Union Minister Venod Sharma, was sentenced to life imprisonment for killing Jessica lall in 1999, and he moved the High Court seeking parole to prepare for and appear in his second semester exams of postgraduation in Human Rights.
In his plea, he said he has to “prepare Master’s thesis, field report, study report, case study report and select a guide as required for completion of the postgraduation course”. Claiming that on November 27, 2013, the Superintendent of Tihar Jail had forwarded his application for granting of parole to the Government, the convict said that till date no order had been passed.
Reversing the trial court’s acquittal order, the Delhi High Court had awarded life sentence to him in December 2006 in the murder case and the Supreme Court had upheld the High Court order against him in April 2010.