Capital punishment is a legal but rarely carried out sentence
in India. Imposition of the penalty is not always followed by execution (even when it is upheld on appeal), because of the possibility of commutation to life imprisonment. In 1974, there came into force a new CPC (Criminal Procedure Code). According to the new code, for all offences involving murder, life imprisonment was to be the norm. The death penalty was to be awarded only in exceptional circumstances. Between 1975 and 1991, about 40 people were executed. On April 27, 1995 Auto Shankar was hanged in Salem, India. Since 1995 only one execution, that of Dhananjoy Chatterjee in August 2004, has taken place.
Provisions in the IPC The Indian Penal Code (IPC) provides for capital punishment for some of the following offences, or for criminal conspiracy to commit any of the following offences (Section 120-B): 1. Murder (s.302) and murder committed by a life convict (s. 303).(Though the latter was struck down by the Supreme Court, it still remains in the IPC) 2. Treason, for waging war against the Government of India (s.121) 3. Attempted murder by a serving life convict (s.307(2)) 4. Kidnapping for ransom (s.364A) 5. Dacoity [armed robbery or banditry] with murder (s.396)
Appeal Once sentenced, a defendant has the right to appeal against the sentence as well as the conviction. The appeal will be heard by a higher court and can go all the way up to the Supreme Court, a process that can take two to three years. If all fails, the president of India can be approached to grant clemency - something he can do only after seeking the advice of the Indian cabinet. In the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case a special court sentenced to death 26 men and women in 1998. In May 1999 the Supreme Court commuted three of the death sentences to life imprisonment and released 19 others. Of the remaining four, one was granted clemency in August 2000, while the appeals of the others are pending before the president.
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