There is increasing doubt regarding the reasons behind the Presidential pardon granted to Mahendralal Patel, also known as Mahendra Motibhai Patel, despite his not serving his conviction. Patel was charged with Abuse of Office in 2006 and was convicted in absentia on November 20, 2014, leading to a 12-month prison sentence. However, he did not fulfill his sentence, as the court had permitted him to travel abroad for medical treatment, from which he never returned.
Efforts to reach Attorney-General Graham Leung, who chairs the Mercy Commission, for clarification on the conditional pardon given to Mr. Patel have been unsuccessful. Attempts to follow up have also yielded no response.
Fiji Corrections Service (FCS) Commissioner Jalesi Nakarawa noted that Patel’s name was absent from the list submitted to the Mercy Commission. The list released by FCS did not include Patel, yet shortly afterward, the Fiji Government’s Facebook page announced the names of those pardoned, which included Patel.
Nakarawa stated that FCS processes petitions from convicted prisoners and expressed confusion about how Patel’s case reached the Mercy Commission since he was not in their custody.
The Mercy Commission clarified that Patel submitted a petition on April 4, 2023, which was initially dismissed. After receiving a letter for reconsideration from Patel’s lawyers on June 13, the Commission reevaluated his case, taking into account his age, the duration of his absence from Fiji, and his significant contributions to the nation. Consequently, they recommended a conditional pardon contingent upon his not reoffending. The President acted on these recommendations on September 18, 2024, confirming that the decisions were made in line with the Constitution.