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Capital Punishment in India: Status & Arguments - UPSC Editorials
IMPORTANT LINKS
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Analysis based on |
Editorial published in Mitigating circumstances: Why RG Kar rape case convict was not given death penalty The Indian Express on January 21st, 2025 |
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Topics for UPSC Prelims |
Indian Judiciary, Indian Penal Code (IPC), Fundamental Rights, Rarest of rare doctrine |
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Topics for UPSC Mains |
Judiciary's role in maintaining checks and balances, Balancing crime deterrence and human rights through judicial decisions |
Why in News?
The verdict of the Supreme Court in the RG Kar rape case has lately been the talk of the town. The CBI had strongly argued for the death sentence as it was a crime that was just horrific and was bringing out protests and anger in doctors and among people. Even Chief Minister of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee, had pleaded for capital punishment for the person convicted. This case explains how the "rarest of rare" principle of India is being subjected to rigorous use. It provides ground for concern against the attitude of a justice system at the use of the death sentence.
Read the article on the Case Against Death Penalty!
What is Capital Punishment?
Capital punishment, more commonly referred to as the death penalty, is the act of execution sanctioned by the state as a form of punishment for a crime. It is one of the legal sentences handed down for some crimes; for example, murder or terrorism, including acts of extreme brutality. The main objective is to act as a deterrent against heinous crimes, to give retribution to the victims, and to maintain social order.
Status of Capital Punishment in India
Capital punishment is a legally permissible and institutionalized phenomenon that has existed for thousands of years in the history of the country. The Indian Penal Code, 1860, lists several crimes for which the death penalty may be imposed, such as:
- murder (Section 302),
- waging war against the government (Section 121), and
- abetment of suicide by a minor or insane person (Section 305).
Although the practice of the death penalty is technically legal, its usage falls under highly strict guidelines. It is reserved only for the most egregious crimes, by the doctrine of "rarest of rare" enunciated by the Supreme Court.
Read the article on the Death Penalty & Arguments Related to Capital Punishment!
Arguments Supporting Capital Punishment in India
Some of the arguments in support of capital punishment in India are:
- Deterrence: The advocates believe that the death penalty has a deterrent effect on serious crimes. The death penalty would deter perpetrators from committing such an atrocious act, hence keeping the crime rates lower.
- Retribution: The death penalty gives justice to the victims and their family members by punishing them with a punishment of the same seriousness as the crime. It is, therefore, the societal condemnation of such heinous crimes.
- Public Order: About terrorism and all the other types of national security threats, application of the death penalty is needed so that the public order would be served. It feels like killings of these terrorists would save the country from further troubles.
- Incapacitation: The death penalty removes dangerous criminals from society permanently so they can never commit the crimes again. It ensures public safety by excluding the possibility of reoffending.
Arguments Against Capital Punishment in India
The following are the arguments against the existence of capital punishment in India:
- Human Rights Violation: Death sentence is said to be violative of right to life that forms the base of the Indian Constitution and instruments on human rights. It has also been considered cruel and inhuman punishment.
- Irreversibility: The only most serious ethical and judicial dilemma in the execution of the death sentence is that when executed, if evidence comes after the execution exonerating the accused person, then it cannot be reversed.
- Ineffectiveness: It has been established that the death penalty may not be any more effective as a deterrent to crime than life imprisonment. Evidence on its effectiveness as a deterrent is inconclusive, which has cast doubt over its efficacy as a crime control measure.
- Arbitrariness: The death penalty can be applied at the discretion of the convict's socio-economic status and the standard of legal representation that makes the process judicially questionable.
Read the article on the Capital Punishment Statistics 2015!
Important Supreme Court Judgments Related to Capital Punishments in India
Here are the some of the major judicial pronouncements related to capital punishments in India:
Bachan Singh v. State of Punjab (1980)
The landmark judgment declared the constitutionality of the death penalty but restricted its applicability to the "rarest of rare" cases. It further underlined the plea that aggravating and mitigating circumstances should be taken into account while awarding the death penalty.
Machhi Singh v. State of Punjab, 1983
The court introduces "collective conscience," which pronounces that capital punishment can be awarded if the act shocks the conscience of society at large. Judgment included some extreme brutality along with premeditation and gross elements as the reason for the awarding of capital punishment.
Santosh Kumar Satishbhushan Bariyar v. State of Maharashtra (2009)
This emphasized the fact that sufficient evidence was required to explain why the convict could not be reformed before giving the death sentence. In fact, the court sought a presumption against an order of death unless no chance at reform exists.
Shankar Kisanrao Khade v. State of Maharashtra (2013)
The court pointed out inconsistency in considering age as a mitigating factor. The review highlighted the subjective nature of death penalty sentences and urged consistency in their application.
Dattaraya v. State of Maharashtra (2020)
Advocated a separate and meaningful hearing for the purposes of sentencing at the time of judgment when the capital punishment is awarded. The court held that there must be sufficient time to consider the mitigating circumstances before the capital punishment is pronounced.
'Rarest of Rare' in Indian LawThe "rarest of rare" doctrine, laid down in the Bachan Singh case, forms the bedrock principle governing the award of capital punishment in India. This test mandates courts to award capital punishment only when the crime is so gruesome and brutal that it calls for an exceptional response, and the convict cannot be reformed. Aggravating Circumstances
Mitigating Circumstances
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Read the article on the Kinds of Punishment!
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