With reference to India, consider the following statements : ​ 1. When a prisoner makes out a sufficient case, parole cannot be denied to such prisoner because it becomes a matter of his/her right. ​ 2. State Governments have their own Prisoners Release on Parole Rules. ​ Which of the statements given above is/are correct? ​

The correct answer is B, because only Statement 2 is correct.

• Statement 1 is wrong. Parole is not an absolute right of a prisoner, even when a case is made out. The Supreme Court has repeatedly held that parole cannot be claimed as a matter of right; it is granted under the statutory and rule-based framework and is subject to conditions, the nature of the offence, and public interest. A prisoner's case strengthens the claim for consideration, but the authority still exercises discretion.
• Statement 2 is correct. Prisons are a State subject under the Seventh Schedule (State List, entry 4), so State Governments frame their own Prisoners Release on Parole Rules and Prison Manuals. These vary from State to State, which is why parole eligibility and duration differ across India. The Model Prison Manual, 2016, is only a guiding template that States are encouraged to adopt.

The core concept is the distinction between a right and a discretionary, rule-governed concession, along with the federal division of prison administration. For Mains GS-II, this links to prison reforms, overcrowding and undertrials, and Centre-State distribution of legislative powers.

Trap: Students often assume that because prisoners have fundamental rights, parole is also a right. Those rights are protected, but parole is a conditional concession.