LUCKNOW, May 14 -- The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court recently dismissed a short-term bail application filed by a convict seeking permission to undertake the Haj pilgrimage, stating that the right to perform Haj is not absolute and can be curtailed following imprisonment.

The applicant Jahid of the Bahraich district, convicted under Section 304 (Culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the Indian Penal Code, had sought short-term bail on the grounds that he was selected for Haj and had applied along with his wife before the conviction. He also cited Article 21 of the Constitution, claiming the right to travel for Haj as a fundamental liberty.

However, Justice Alok Mathur, while rejecting the plea, noted, "I do not find a...