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In a significant decision, a 3-Judge Bench of the Supreme Court explored the contours of Article 32 of the Constitution to answer whether death sentence which has attained finality, can be revisited at all?
“Creating a false appearance of having solved a case by presenting that the accused had been brought to justice gave a misleading sense of resolution. This deceptive closure undermined public trust and falsely reassured society, while in reality, the true threat remained at large.”
“Admittedly, none of the witnesses examined on behalf of the prosecution has claimed to have seen the convict committing the murder of the victim. The case is entirely based upon circumstantial evidence.”
While the crime was heinous and against a child, the Court noted that although the act was “barbaric”, it could not be termed “brutal” in the sense that it required capital punishment.
Appointed directly from the Bar as a Judge of the Supreme Court of India, Justice P.S. Narasimha’s tenure as an advocate and as a Judge boasts of several landmark cases.
Justice Joymalya Bagchi formerly serving as Judge of Calcutta High Court was appointed to the Supreme Court on 10-3-2025 and is in line to become the CJI in 2031.
“Article 21 of the Constitution does not end with the pronouncement of the sentence but extends to the execution stage of that sentence. An inordinate delay in the execution of the sentence of death has a dehumanising effect on the accused. An inordinate delay caused by circumstances beyond the prisoners’ control mandates the commutation of a death sentence.”
This report covers the Supreme Court’s Never Reported Judgment, on commutation of sentence, dating back to the year 1954.
Read about the significant criminal law matters heard and decided by the Supreme Court and High Courts in October 2024
The accused was arrested in 2012 on the suspicion of murdering his wife, mother and 2-year-old daughter. In 2016, the Trial Court convicted him and imposed death penalty which was confirmed by Bombay High Court
The Court affirmed the father’s conviction but converted the death penalty to 20 years’ rigorous imprisonment without remission considering several mitigating factors favouring the accused.
The present case is the most brutal, barbaric, and gruesome murder of a 60-year-old mother by her son on 28-08-2017 at Makadwala Vasahat, Kolhapur, where her body parts, i.e., liver, intestine, heart, rib and breast were eviscerated outside
The prosecution case has crumbled like a house of cards. Neither the circumstances have been proved which can lead to a conclusion that the accused was complicit in offence, nor any consistent prosecution version has come which can be relied upon.
The Court permitted to put the questions mentioned in the questionnaire to the informant in the cross-examination. Regarding the evidentiary value of the same, the Court added that it will be decided during hearing of the criminal appeal and the application for confirmation of sentence.
The Court opined that the prosecution did not place any material or evidence to conclude that reformation, rehabilitation, and social re-integration of the accused into society was not possible.
Appointed directly from the Bar as a Judge of the Supreme Court of India, Justice P.S. Narasimha’s tenure as an advocate and as a Judge boasts of several landmark cases.
“The series of inhuman acts involved extreme brutality and exceptional depravity and the crime was committed in an extremely brutal, grotesque, diabolical, revolting and dastardly manner.”
“The sword of justice given to a Judge has to be exercise with utmost responsibility and judiciously considering the reforms.”
Former CJI Justice UU Lalit released the 8th edition of Ahmad Siddique’s book “Criminology, Penology and Victimology” revised by Advocate Sanjay Vashishtha
“Murder was committed by him by 3 gunshot injuries to each of them, hence no doubt, such heinous crime should be deprecated and no amount of criticism can be given to such gruesome act, that too, of his own father and mother.”