Death Penalty: Under what circumstances the death penalty can be reduced, now a five-judge bench will prepare guidelines

A hearing was held in the Supreme Court today regarding the guidelines relating to circumstances commuting the death penalty. After the hearing, the Supreme Court referred the matter to a five-judge bench. After hearing the arguments, a bench headed by Chief Justice Uday Umesh Lalit said that the matter needs to be heard by a larger bench for clarity and a common view and this bench will decide the guidelines.

Let us inform you that Chief Justice UU Lalit reserved his decision regarding the matter on August 17. He had said that the death penalty is such a punishment after which the guilty attains death and after death, the judgment cannot be reversed or reversed under any circumstances. Therefore, it is necessary to give every opportunity to the accused to prove the gravity of his offense. So that the court can be persuaded that the death penalty is not required in the case. The Supreme Court, on the decision of this petition, wants to ensure that circumstantial evidence is properly incorporated during the trial in cases with the possibility of capital punishment. The Supreme Court felt that the matter needed prompt action.

The top court had taken suo moto cognizance of the matter and observed that there is an urgent need to ensure that the circumstances which reduce the punishment for those offenses (in the lower court) are considered at the trial stage itself. punishment is provided. The case arose out of a petition by a man named Irfan, challenging the death sentence awarded to him by the trial court, which was confirmed by the Madhya Pradesh High Court.

There should be freedom to serve life imprisonment

A bench headed by UU Lalit had said during the last hearing (August 17) that the courts can adjourn the matter before awarding the sentence for relief as appropriate. Justice SR Bhat and Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia were also members of the bench. The top court had said that if the court concludes based on crime theory that the death penalty is not necessary, it should be at liberty to award life imprisonment on the same day. On the other hand, if there is a need for some additional discussion concerning the death penalty in the case, then an effort should be made for that.

The task of incorporating facts should be left to the High Court.

Senior advocate Siddharth Dave, who has been appointed as amicus curiae, is assisting the bench in the matter. He has said that such matters should be directed as per the earlier judgments of the Supreme Court. On the other hand, Attorney General KK Venugopal also said that the act of including such facts in probable death penalty cases should be left to the discretion of the High Court. To this, the bench said that it is up to the trial court judge to remove the weak circumstances in favor of the accused. I will miss the opportunity to see it.

It also said that for an offense punishable with death, the State should at an appropriate time produce the evidence already submitted before the Sessions Court to disclose the psychological assessment of the accused. In criminal law, mitigating circumstances are factors that help reduce a criminal's guilt and encourage judges to be more lenient with punishment. The bench had said that at present the offense and its nature, whether it falls in the rarest to the rarest category, are discussed and the offender and the circumstances in his favor are dealt with at the time of sentencing.

The bench, earlier, had decided to examine how courts dealing with death penalty cases can obtain a comprehensive analysis of the accused and the offense, especially in mitigating circumstances, so that the concerned judicial officer can decide. whether the death penalty is needed or not. Earlier an application was filed by Project 39A of the National Law University, Delhi, seeking permission of an investigator to collect information reducing the sentence in favor of the accused to argue a death sentence.

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