Sabrina Lall, the sister of Jessica Lall, who was shot dead in Delhi nearly 20 years ago, has said that she has no objection to the release of her sister’s killer, Siddharth Vashishta alias Manu Sharma.

The Delhi High Court had found Sharma guilty in the case in 2006, and sentenced him to life in prison. The verdict was upheld by the Supreme Court in 2010. Sharma had opened fire at Lall on April 30, 1999, when she refused to serve him alcohol at a restaurant in south Delhi because the bar was closed. He is the son of former Union Minister Venod Sharma.

In a letter to the welfare office of Jail 2 of Tihar Prison last month, Sabrina Lall wrote, “I am told that in this period he has been doing good work for charity and helping inmates in jail, which I feel is a reflection of reform,’’ The Times of India reported on Monday. “I would like to state I have no objection to his release, owing to the fact that he has spent 15 years in jail.”

Her letter was in response to the jail officer’s letter to her regarding “compensation and release of Sidhartha Vahishta s/o Venod Sharma convicted in FIR no 287/1999 under section 302 IPC”.

“I do not require financial assistance from the victim welfare fund and request you to give the same to others, who are more in need,” Sabrina Lall added in the letter. “It will be like catharsis to forgive and move on. I also need to get on with my life,” she told The Times of India.

“I have never met him or any of his family members. I was very upset and hurt, and for many years, we [she and her parents] were quite angry,” Sabrina Lall said, according to The Hindu. “But I think he has served enough for the crime he had committed. My parents passed away years ago. I do not want to hold a grudge and anger against him anymore.”

Prison officials have claimed Sharma is associated with an NGO working for the rehabilitation of prisoners and their children. He also reportedly helps inmates’ children with their education.

Sharma was recently moved to an “open jail”, where he can leave at 8 am and return after a day’s work at 6 pm, the Hindustan Times reported. The report added that prison officials regard the move to an open jail as a step before an inmate is released. However, the report also added that Sharma was not found at the office of the non-governmental organisation that was listed as his work place, and that the office had been vacant for around eight months.