D.B. CIVIL PAROLE WRIT PETITION NO.8474/2009 (Nirmal Kumar Bhartiya Vs. State & Ors.) DATE OF ORDER : 27.10.2009 HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE A.M. KAPADIA HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE DEO NARAYAN THANVI By post. Mr. K.R. Bishnoi, Public Prosecutor. Heard learned Public Prosecutor. By way of this petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India titled as Habeas Corpus under Articles 14 & 21 of the Constitution of India, convict petitioner Nirmal Kumar Bhartiya has prayed that being a citizen of India, he may be allowed to purchase law books at his own expenses for reading, so that he may be able to exercise his legal rights as no adequate law books are available at Central Jail, Bikaner. In the reply, the State has submitted that there is a library in the Central Jail itself and any prisoner can read the books in the library and there is no need to give permission to the convict petitioner to purchase any law books out side the jail. Having perused the reply, we are of the view that right to get enlightened with the law, every citizen has a right to read the books of his own choice, but for a convict, it cannot be permitted that each and every type of journals are to be purchased from outside the jail. If the law books are not available in the jail, then the concerned Superintendent may consider the request of the prisoner for purchasing the necessary law books only from outside the jail at his own expenses or the convict may move a request to the Legal Services Authority. With the above observations, this petition being in the nature of mandamus is disposed of. (DEO NARAYAN THANVI), J. (A.M. KAPADIA), J. ms rathore