Prelims – Current events of national and international relations | Polity
Why in news?
The Supreme Court recently upheld the constitutional validity of hanging as a mode of executing the death penalty answering a public Interest Litigation (PIL).
- Context – The Court held that hanging, when properly administered, does not violate the right to dignity under Article 21.
- Issue – The filed PIL raised questions on
- Deena v. Union of India (1983)
- Parliament retention on hanging while enacting the BNSS
Constitutional & Legal Provisions –
- Article 21 – Right to life and personal liberty, includes the principle of living and dying with dignity.
- Gian Kaur v. State of Punjab (1996) – Recognised the concept of the right to die with dignity in the context of the right to life.
- Section 393(5), BNSS – Provides that a death sentence shall direct that the person “be hanged by the neck till he is dead.”
- The provision has its roots in the CrPC, 1861 and has continued through subsequent legal changes.
- Key Precedent — In Deena v. Union of India (1983),A three-judge Bench upheld hanging as constitutionally valid.
- Held that properly administered long-drop hanging is intended to cause rapid unconsciousness through cervical injury.
- It was considered compatible with Article 21 and the requirement of execution with decency and dignity.
- Arguments Against Hanging –
- Hanging may cause physical pain and suffering.
- The outcome can be unpredictable.
- A short drop may result in asphyxiation, while an excessive drop may cause severe injury.
- A study of 34 historical executions in England (1882–1945) was cited to challenge the reliability of the method.
- Law Commission of India – 187th Report (2003) recommended introducing lethal injection as an alternative method of execution.
- Its recommendations are recommendatory, not binding.
- Supreme Court's Reasoning –
- No alternative method (lethal injection, electrocution, lethal gas or shooting) was established to be clearly superior.
- Parliament's decision to retain hanging in the BNSS was considered significant.
- The Court held that execution must be carried out with decency, dignity and without degradation or brutality.
Reference
The Indian Express| Constitutional Validity of Hanging
