The Supreme Court has removed a 20-year remission bar that the Orissa High Court added in murder convicts’ own appeals, although neither the State nor the victims had filed an appeal or revision. The direction, which stopped the convicts from seeking remission before completing at least 20 years in prison, has been set aside, and the trial court’s sentence of life imprisonment and fine has been restored.
New Delhi: Without an appeal or revision by the State or the victims, a conviction appeal brought by an accused cannot be turned into a vehicle for enhancing that person’s sentence, the Supreme Court has reiterated [Basanta Dehury Etc. v. The State of Orissa].
Justices B. V. Nagarathna and R. Mahadevan applied that restriction to the appeals of Basanta Dehury and others against the State of Orissa. The signed order is dated October 30, 2026, and was uploaded on November 6.
Why Section 386 was the limit
In paragraph 9, the Supreme Court noted that there was no other appeal or revision filed by either the State or the victims. In that situation, it held, the High Court ought not to have enhanced the sentence while deciding the convicts’ appeals.
The bench relied on Section 386(b)(ii) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973. That provision allows an appellate court deciding a conviction appeal to alter the nature or extent of the sentence, with or without altering the finding, but does not permit enhancement through that power.
The Court also relied on its decisions in Sachin and Nagarajan. The issue before it was the permissible scope of appellate sentencing power in the proceedings that had actually been filed.
What the High Court did
The case arose from the killing of two people in Keonjhar district in October 2014. The trial court convicted the appellants in August 2020 and sentenced each to life imprisonment and a Rs.10,000 fine for murder. It also imposed five years’ rigorous imprisonment and a Rs.5,000 fine under Section 450 IPC, with the prison terms to run concurrently.
The convicts challenged the decision before the Orissa High Court. After upholding their convictions, the High Court issued notice on enhancement and subsequently modified the sentence on August 4, 2023.
It directed that the appellants would not be eligible to claim remission before undergoing a minimum of 20 years’ imprisonment and also awarded additional monetary compensation to the victims’ children. The High Court relied on the brutality of the crime and its impact on the children who witnessed it.
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The competing submissions
The appellants argued that they could not be placed in a worse position through the appeals they themselves filed against their conviction and life sentence. They relied on Nagarajan v. State of Tamil Nadu, (2025) 8 SCC 331, and Sachin v. State of Maharashtra, (2025) 9 SCC 507.
The State defended the High Court’s decision, submitting that the gravity of the crime justified the additional sentencing restriction.
Convictions remain; trial sentence restored
The Supreme Court set aside the sentence imposed by the High Court and restored the trial court’s sentence of life imprisonment and fine. It allowed the appeals in those terms.
The order removes the additional 20-year restriction imposed in these appeals. It neither acquits the appellants nor directs their immediate release. Any claim for remission remains subject to the applicable law.
Case: Basanta Dehury Etc. v. The State of Orissa
Proceedings: Criminal appeals arising from SLP (Criminal) Nos. 14089–14091/2026
High Court proceedings: JCRLA 37/2020; CRLA 416/2021 and 417/2021
Bench: Justices B. V. Nagarathna and R. Mahadevan, Supreme Court of India
Order: October 30, 2026; uploaded November 6, 2026
Outcome: High Court’s sentence set aside; trial court’s life sentence and fine restored.
