104-Year-Old Man Freed After 43 Years in Jail for Murder He Didn’t Commit

A centenarian who spent over four decades behind bars has finally been acquitted and released. In a rare and extraordinary development from Uttar Pradesh, a 104-year-old man was declared innocent and freed after enduring approximately 43 years of imprisonment in connection with a murder case.

The incident traces back to August 16, 1977, when a violent clash broke out between two groups in Gauraye village, located in the Kaushambi district of Uttar Pradesh. During the confrontation, a man named Prabhu Saroj lost his life. In connection with the murder and attempted murder charges, a man named Lakhan, along with three others, was named as an accused. Following a trial, the District Sessions Court in Prayagraj, in 1982, sentenced all four to life imprisonment.

Challenging the District Court's verdict, all four convicts filed an appeal in the Allahabad High Court. However, while the appeal process was underway, three of the co-accused passed away. After a prolonged legal process, the Allahabad High Court concluded the hearing and delivered its final judgment on May 2, declaring Lakhan innocent.

According to prison records, Lakhan was born on January 4, 1921. He had remained incarcerated since his arrest in 1977 over the murder allegations. Now aged 104, Lakhan was released following the court’s verdict that found him not guilty. Prison authorities subsequently handed him over to the care of his daughter, who resides in Sharira village within the same district.