Hyderabad: A prominent human rights organisation has praised the Telangana government’s decision to release 102 life-term prisoners ahead of schedule, but called on authorities to move faster and stick to legally mandated deadlines.
The Human Rights Forum (HRF) said it learnt through local newspapers that the state Home Department had drawn up a list of 102 prisoners, including six women, who are eligible for early release under Supreme Court guidelines. The file has reportedly been sent to Chief Minister Revanth Reddy’s office for final sign-off.
In a letter to the Chief Minister, the Forum said families of the prisoners and civil society groups welcomed the move as a “compassionate step by the government.”
But HRF also flagged a concern that a government order issued in October 2025 requires authorities to review and update the list of eligible prisoners every four months. The forum pointed out that while Phase-III of the review process ran from February 1 to September 15, 2025, the Phase-I list covering January to March this year should have already been taken up, suggesting the government is running behind schedule.
The group made three specific requests, such as releasing the 102 approved prisoners as soon as paperwork is complete, following the four-monthly review schedule going forward and considering freeing the next batch of eligible long-term prisoners on Independence Day as a goodwill gesture.
