State Of Punjab And Ors vs Nihal Singh

The respondent, a convict sentenced to life imprisonment, challenged his classification under the Punjab Jail Manual, seeking the benefits of a 'Class-B' prisoner. The High Court had initially held that the classification of prisoners into Classes A, B, and C was violative of Articles 14 and 15(1) of the Constitution of India. The legal issue pertains to whether the categorization of prisoners for the purpose of providing facilities based on specific criteria constitutes an unconstitutional discrimination.