"Parmod Kalia, 67, ran a branch in Orpington, south-east London, for 11 years before he was accused of theft and spent six months in prison. His conviction was later overturned but he said the ordeal "broke him". Between 1999 and 2015, more than 700 Post Office branch managers were convicted of fraud and theft based on faulty software, called Horizon."
"When Kalia had his conviction quashed at Southwark Crown Court in 2021, the Post Office did not oppose their appeals on the grounds that it was not in the public interest to pursue a retrial. However, the Post Office said if there had been retrials, there was a reasonable prospect of conviction and therefore Mr Kalia was not owed full compensation for malicious prosecution."
"He was such a dignified, proud man but you could see there was this undercurrent of anger. We all have this anger of 'why has it taken so long?' I think of his family now who have to carry on this fight. As well as dealing with the death of a husband, a father, they've now got to"
Parmod Kalia, 67, operated a Post Office branch in Orpington for 11 years before being accused of theft based on faulty Horizon software. He served six months in prison after pleading guilty in 2001, keeping his conviction secret for 15 years. His conviction was quashed in 2021 at Southwark Crown Court. However, the Post Office denied him full compensation for malicious prosecution, claiming a reasonable prospect of conviction existed had there been a retrial. Between 1999 and 2015, over 700 Post Office branch managers faced similar wrongful convictions. Kalia also worked as a foster carer and was remembered as a kind, dignified man whose ordeal profoundly affected him.
Read at www.bbc.com
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