Essay on Structural set up of Parole Boards and their Functions !
The Parole Board consists of parole administrators who are from among the respectable members of society. Since the police is looked with bias and distrust in India and elsewhere, the police opinion about an inmate is not considered to be valid ground for allowing a particular offender on parole.
The members of Parole Board are assigned the function of discharging convicted prisoners on parole after careful scrutiny. Thus, the Parole Board takes administrative decision on paroling out prisoners and while acting as such, they are performing a quasi-judicial function.
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Another important function assigned to the parole personnel is to prepare a case history of parolees and help and advise them in the process of their rehabilitation.
Besides Parole Board, there is also a set of field workers functioning outside the prisons. These field personnel keep a close supervision over parolees and report the cases of parole violations to the parole authorities.
Thus the parole organisation, by and large, consists of three agencies, namely, the Parole Board, the Case Investigators and the Parole Supervisors; all of them work in close liaison with each other.
In United States, the task of granting parole is handled by the expert psychologists and psychiatrists who subject a prisoner to a psychological test to determine his suitability for being paroled out. No such method, however, exists in India and the prospective parolee is given a simple hearing in prison itself to assess his feasibility for discharge on parole.
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The Indian law provides for parole only in cases of serious offenders who are committed to long term sentences. It has now generally been accepted that if at all the prisoners are to be released prior to their final discharge, they must be released on parole sc that they could be kept under proper supervision and guidance.