He was welcomed by the hero after he was released on April 16th after one of the Hindu extremists who were sentenced to life in prison for burning Australian missionary Grahamsteines and his two young sons in India 25 years ago.
Mahendra Hembram was released from Keonihar Prison last week and was released for “good behaviour” by the Odisha State Criminal Review Board. Hembram, 50, came out of prison and adored him and chanted “Jai Sri Ram (Hail Rama)” with Hindu slogans.
“The way Hembram was welcomed with wreaths and the crowds were celebrating a celebration procession with crowds screaming Hindu slogans was a shocking sight for those who believe in the peace and tranquility of society,” Catholic priest and Odisha human rights activist Ajay Singh told Morning Star News.
John Deal, a spokesman for the United Christian Forum, was equally shocked.
“The indecent welcome given to prisoners at his release was seen as belief, but it was a complete exposing of the politics of release,” Daial told Morning Star News.
Court records show in 2002 he once declared he was the sole perpetrator of the murder, but in 2002 he once declared his innocence.
Hembram told reporters that after being released from a prison about 200km from Odisha’s capital, Bhubaneswar, he said, “I spent 25 years in prison after being mistakenly involved in a case related to religious conversion. Today I was released.”
Jailer Manaswini Naik explained the legal basis for his release.
“Hembram was released following the decision of the state’s Judgment Review Board. The Prisons Bureau notified it in a letter Tuesday (April 15) and he was released 25 years later for good conduct in accordance with the rules.”
The release reopened the wounds from one of India’s most shocking hate crimes and turned attention to the pending plea of Darasin, the main perpetrator who remains incarcerated in the same facility.
The crime that shocked the world
Stein, 58, and his sons, Philip (10) and Timothy (6), were sleeping in a train station wagon on January 22, 1999, outside a church building in Manoharpur village in Keonihar district.
That night, a retired police officer stationed in Keonihar said the Hindu mob targeted Stein, who was allegedly supporting religious conversion.
“It is allegedly Hembram assaulted him and his two children, accusing Stein of promoting conversion,” the officer reportedly recalled. “The mob was led by Dara and Hembram, who were raising slogans against Staines. Stein was pleading for mercy. Hembram and Dara pushed the foreigner and his two children into the van, poured kerosene and set the fire on it.”
Witnesses reported that the victim spread straws in the car for warmth. As they tried to escape from the flames, the mob, armed with lattices (long wooden poles), prevented them from being killed, leading to their deaths. Those skeletal ruins were later recovered.
President Kr Narayanan then condemned the murder and called it a part of the “inventory of black deeds from around the world.”
Investigation and conviction
The Central Bureau of Investigation arrested 51 people between 1999 and 2000 in connection with the crime. On December 9, 1999, Hembram was captured and Singh avoided the authorities until January 31, 2000.
Within three years, 37 suspects were acquitted.
During the trial, Hembram showed unstable behavior. On February 1, 2002, he “disappeared mentally restlessness, declared himself the only perpetrator, and alleged that the others were innocent,” according to court records.
Evidence against Singh was mounted when Dayanidhi Patra suspect testified that he had seen him light a car.
On September 22, 2003, designated CBI court in Bhubaneswar was sentenced to execution by Singh, with 12 people, including Hembram, sentenced to life in prison. One boy was tested individually.
The Orissa High Court later acquitted 11 prisoners, but upheld the sentences of Singh and Hembram. However, in 2005 he exempted Singh from terminating his death sentence in 2011, a decision upheld by the Supreme Court. The juvenile was released in 2008 after appeal.
“The Christian community in India had no opposed the death penalty remission imposed on Darasin and his conspirators, but we expected that innocent murderers would remain in prison for their lifetimes,” Deal said.
Supreme Court Disputes
In January 2011, when the Supreme Court upheld life sentence, P. The two judge bench consisting of Sathasivam and Judge BS Chauhan made the controversial observations that later sparked extensive debate.
The court initially stated that the intention behind the murder was “to teach Grahamsteines a lesson about his religious activities: to convert poor tribes into Christianity.”
Civil society organizations have accused these statements of unjustice. In a rare move, the same Supreme Court bench played Suo Motu on November 17, 2021, erasing his own observations.
The court removed the controversial passageway and replaced it. “However, since more than 12 years have passed since the law was in place, the opinion that the life sentence awarded by the High Court does not need to be strengthened (to the death penalty) taking into account the de facto position discussed in the previous para.”
The Bench also issued another controversial statement that read, “it is uncontroversial that there is no justification to interfere with someone else’s belief based on the flawed premise that one religion is superior to another.”
It was replaced by a simpler declaration: “There is no justification to interfere with someone’s religious beliefs by any means.”
reaction
Rep. Manicum Tagore denounced the release of Hembram on social media platform X, saying, “The hated killer who burned Graham Staines and his two little sons is now walking freely.
Ajay Singh, an activist priest in Odisha (formerly Odisha), stressed that the crimes of Hembram and Dara Singh should not be treated as “simple murders.”
“This is the rarest of the rare crimes against humanity if Staines and his sons are burned alive in the most wilderness, and murderers like Hembram and Dalacin are released and celebrated in such a way, send the wrong message to those who indulge in such crimes,” the priest said.
Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) belongs to Rashtriyaswayam Sevaksan (RSS), the Hindu nationalist parent of the dominant Bharatiyajanata Party (BJP), and praised the release of Hembram.
“It’s a good day for us. We welcome the government’s decision,” said Kedar Dash, VHP co-secretary.
Mohan Maj, the current BJP prime minister of Odisha, previously supported the release of Dara Singh, who was in office as a member of the Legislative Assembly Keonjihar. Dayal said that current Prime Minister Odisha, as one of the main activists seeking the release of Dara Singh, “the political cry for his release is also increasing.”
Legal Procedures
Hembram was initially detained at Jalpada Prison in Bhubaneswar and was sentenced to life in prison on September 22, 2003. Over 25 years, he was transferred to facilities at Cuttack, Berhampur, Baripada and Anandpur Sub-Jail before arriving at Keonjhar prison on September 28, 2011.
The prison officials bid a heartfelt farewell to Hembram and presented him with a bank passage that includes income from prison labor.
This release follows Odisha’s early release policy for 2022. The guidelines require a serious murder case that requires a minimum of 14 years in prison for life prisoners and 20-25 years before considering remission. Age considerations apply to female prisoners over 60 and men over 65.
Another 30 murderous prisoners were also released on April 16th and served for 14 to 25 years.
“The government has decided to release several life prisoners who have served in prison for over 14 years,” Keonjihar Prison Director Manaswini Nayak told the media.
Jharpada Prison Chief Manoranjan Pratihari detailed the process.
“The state’s writing review board led by the Secretary of the Interior recommends releases based on the statements of district collectors and SPS,” he said. “Files proceeded through the Prime Minister’s Office following approval by the board and received approval of final remission from the governor.”
Official sources confirmed that 14 life prisoners had been released between 2023 and 2024.
Dalasin’s pending plea
Now we are focusing on the appeal of Dalacin. On March 19, the Supreme Court directed the Odisha government to decide on the plea for remission within six weeks.
“The learned counsel representing Odisha will submit that the government is deliberating on the issue and will immediately decide whether to transfer the ruling or not,” the court said. “We believe it would be appropriate to postpone the issue for six weeks.”
Singh’s lawyer, Vishnu Shankar Jain, cited the Supreme Court precedent in releasing AG Peralibaran, who had served for more than 30 years in the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in 1991.
“I’m looking for directions to be released from prison on this ground (for Singh),” Jain said.
Singh’s petition claims that after 24 years of incarceration he “repented” the consequences of actions suitable for “youthful anger.”
“In the enthusiasm of the youth supported by a passionate response to India’s brutal history, the petitioner’s spirit instantly lost its restraint,” the petition states.
The petition points out that Singh was never given parole, including when his mother died, preventing him from performing his final ritual.
Singh continues to serve simultaneous life sentences for separate murders of Muslim trader and Catholic priest Pastor Ar Das. The case was heard in early May and concludes one of the most divisive criminal cases potentially in India.
Christian support organization Open Door ranks 11th in India on the 2025 global watch list where Christians face the toughest persecution. India came in 31st in 2013, but has steadily fallen in the rankings since Narendra Modi took power as prime minister.
Defenders of religious rights point to the hostile tone of the National Democratic Alliance government led by the Hindu nationalist BJP who said that since Modi came to power in May 2014, he has encouraged Hindu extremists in India.
