Sajid Makwana was barely four in 1996 when a life sentence for his father, Hasan, was confirmed by the Bombay high court. Hasan never applied for parole after his conviction. So when he was set to be released from the Kalamba central prison here on Tuesday after serving 23 years behind bars, Sajid (24) was naturally over the moon.
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However, the excitement of meeting his father proved too much; he collapsed and died of a cardiac arrest right outside the jail.
Jail superintendent Sharad Shelke said Hasan (65) came out of the prison in the afternoon. "He saluted as he stood facing the jail and headed to meet his family members who were in a car on the other side of the road. Sajid was so happy to meet his father that he could not control his emotions. Even as he was talking to Hasan, Sajid complained of chest pain and fell. The family took him to a nearby private hospital where he was declared dead due to a sudden cardiac arrest," he said.
Sajid operated a motor driving school in Andheri, Mumbai. He had planned to get married after Hasan's release from jail. Hasan was arrested by the Mumbai police in 1977 after a man with whom he had fought died of the injuries he had sustained. He was convicted the following year and sentenced to life imprisonment.
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Hasan appealed in the Bombay high court in 1981 and secured bail. However, in 1996, the high court confirmed his life imprisonment and sent him to the Yerwada jail in Pune. He was shifted to the Kalamba jail in November 2015.
"Hasan preferred not to apply for parole since 1996 and used to communicate with his family members over the telephone in the jail premises. Last week, we received a letter from the state government that he was to be released on January 17," Shelke said.