Abolition is the way
Abolition is the way: On the higher judiciary’s move on the death penaltyThe issue is the death penalty itself, not merely the method of execution
Forty years after holding that the mode of executing prisoners by hanging cannot be termed too cruel or barbaric , the Supreme Court of India has now ventured to find out if there is a more dignified and less painful method to carry-out death sentences . The idea of finding an alternative mode of execution, one considered less painful and involves little cruelty , has been part of the wider debate on whether the death penalty should be abolished . Judicial and administrative thinking have leaned towards backing both the idea of capital punishment and the practice of hanging. The Bench has sought fresh data to substantiate the argument that a more humane means of execution can be found. There are two leading judgments on the issue — Bachan Singh vs State of Punjab (1980), which upheld the death penalty, but limited it to the ‘rarest of rare cases’, and Deena Dayal vs Union of India And Others (1983), which upheld the method by ruling that hanging is “as painless as possible” and “causes no greater pain than any other known method”. The 35th Report of the Law Commission (1967) had noted that while electrocution , use of a gas chamber and lethal injection were considered by some to be less painful, it was not in a position to come to a conclusion . It refrained from recommending any change.
Even though the Supreme Court has not favoured abolition, it has developed a robust and humane jurisprudence that has made it difficult for the executive to carry out death sentences. It has restricted its use to the ‘rarest of rare cases’, mandated a balancing of aggravating and mitigating circumstances before sending someone to the gallows , and allowed a post-appeal review hearing in open court. At the same time, it has evolved a clemency jurisprudence that makes decisions on Mercy petitions justiciable and penalises undue delay in disposing of mercy pleas by commuting death sentences to life. The question now before the Court provides yet another opportunity to humanise its approach further. Empirical evidence suggests that hanging need not result in an early or painful death, while there is a body of proof that shows electrocution and lethal injection have their own forms of cruelty. The Union government contends that hanging should be retained, not only because it is not cruel or inhuman but also because it accounts for the least number of botched-up executions. The real issue, however, is that any form of execution is a fall from humaneness , offends human dignity and perpetrates cruelty. Debating the mode only deepens the moral dilemma of whether the taking of life is the best response to the taking of life. If eliminating cruelty and indignity is the aim, abolition is the answer.
-
Clemency (noun) – mercy, mercifulness, leniency, lenience, mildness
क्षमा, रहम
-
Undue (adjective) – excessive, extreme, immoderate, intemperate,
अनुचित
-
Merely (adverb) – only, purely, solely, simply, entirely
केवल
-
Hearing (noun) – trial, court case, inquiry, legal proceedings
सुनवाई
-
Humane (adjective) – Caring, Humanitarian, Compassionate, Kindly, Civilized
मानवीय
-
Cruel (adjective) – Unkind, Mean, Nasty, Brutal, Pitiless, Malicious, Spiteful
क्रूर
-
Gallows (noun) – a wooden frame used in the past for killing people by hanging
फाँसी का तख़्ता
-
Term (verb) – call, name, entitle, title, designate, describe as
कहना
-
Execution (noun) – the act of killing someone as a legal punishment:
मृत्युदंड, फाँसी
-
Practice (noun) – habit, custom, tradition, way, system, routine
प्रथा, कार्य
-
Sentence (noun) – Judgement, ruling; punishment
सज़ा, दंड
-
Hold (verb) – rule, to decide legally
निर्णय करना/मानना
-
Evolve (verb) – develop, advance, grow, mature, progress
विकसित होना
-
Result in (phrasal verb) – cause, bring on, call forth, be the cause of (something) to happen
के परिणामस्वरूप
-
Back (verb) – support, endorse, sanction, approve of
समर्थन करना
-
Bench (noun) –The judge or judges composing a court.
न्यायपीठ
-
Petition (noun) – appeal, request, application,
याचिका
-
Dilemma (noun) – quandary, problem, difficulty, plight
दुविधा
-
Consider (verb) – think, believe, deem, regard as
मानना
-
Executive (noun) – The executive branch of the government, including the president, the cabinet, and several departments, manages the duties of government and its laws.
कार्यपालिका
-
Robust (adjective) – strong, vigorous, sturdy, tough, powerful
मज़बूत
-
Abolition (noun) – cancellation, repeal, annulment, elimination, destruction
उन्मूलन
-
Penalty (noun) – Punishment, fine, sentence, retribution
दंड/ सज़ा
-
Barbaric (adjective) – savage, brutal, uncivilized, inhuman
बर्बर/ अशिष्ट
-
Venture (verb) – to do something; undertake, embark, attempt, risk
साहस करना
-
Dignified (adjective) – respectable, proper, venerated, honored
गरिमापूर्ण
-
Carry out (phrasal verb) – perform, execute, implement, conduct, accomplish
अंजाम देना
-
Cruelty (noun) – brutality, ruthlessness, inhumanity, savagery, atrocity
क्रूरता
-
Abolish (verb) – cancel, eliminate, repeal, annul, nullify, remove
समाप्त करना
-
Lean (verb) – incline, tend, favor, support
झुकना
-
Capital punishment (noun) – death penalty, execution, hanging
मृत्यु दंड
-
Seek (verb) – ask for, request, solicit, call on
मांगना
-
Substantiate (verb) – prove, validate, give proof of, support
पुष्टि करना
-
Means (noun) – method, way, approach, measure
तरीका
-
Uphold (verb) – confirm, endorse, sustain, validate, ratify
बरकरार रखना /समर्थन करना
-
Electrocution (noun) – killing of someone by electric shock.
बिजली द्वारा प्राणदण्ड
-
Lethal (adjective) – deadly, fatal, mortal, poisonous
घातक, जानलेवा
-
Come to a conclusion (phrase) – arrive at a decision, reach a verdict
निर्णय पर पहुँचना
-
Refrain (from) (verb) – abstain, withhold, desist, avoid
बचना, परहेज़ करना
-
Jurisprudence (noun) – law, laws, body of law, rules, regulations.
न्यायशास्त्र
-
Mandate (verb) – to order someone to do something
आदेश देना
-
Aggravating circumstance (noun) – it refers to the factors that increase the severity or culpability of a criminal act
-
Mitigating circumstance (noun) – a circumstance that does not exonerate a person but which reduces the penalty associated with the offense
-
Mercy (noun) – leniency, lenience, clemency, compassion, grace, pity
दया, करुणा
-
Dispose (of) (verb) – get rid of, discard, eliminate, remove
निबटाना, निबटारा करना
-
Plea (noun) – appeal, entreaty, petition, supplication, request
दलील/याचिका
-
Commute (verb) – reduce (a judicial sentence, especially a sentence of death) to another less severe one.
कम कर देना (सज़ा, दंड)
-
Humanise (verb) – humanize, soften, make more humane, make more compassionate
मानवीकरण करना
-
Contend (verb) – claim, assert, argue, maintain, allege
तर्क देना, दावा करना
-
Account for (phrasal verb) – be responsible for
के लिये उत्तरदयी होना
-
Botched-up (adjective) – poorly executed, mishandled
गलत तरीके से निष्पादित
-
Humaneness (noun) – compassion, kindness, empathy, benevolence
मानवीयता
-
Offend (verb) – insult, affront, upset, displease, distress, hurt
ठेस पहुँचाना
-
Dignity (noun) –respect, honor, integrity, self-worth
गरिमा/मर्यादा
-
Perpetrate (verb) – commit, carry out, perform, execute, do
(अपराध) अंजाम देना
-
Deepen (verb) – intensify, heighten, strengthen, increase, enhance
गहरा करना
-
Eliminate (verb) –remove, eradicate, wipe out, annihilate, delete
हटाना/समाप्त करना
-
Indignity (noun) – humiliation, disrespect, shame, dishonor
अपमान
-
Execute (verb) – Put to death, kill, hang, behead, guillotine,
प्राणदंड देना
-
Empirical (adjective) – based on, concerned with, or verifiable by observation or experience rather than theory or pure logic.
प्रयोगसिद्ध