NEW DELHI — The Supreme Court on Thursday reserved its order on a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking to abolish the present practice of executing death sentences by hanging.
A Bench of Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta reserved the order after hearing submissions from Attorney General R. Venkataramani, the Centre’s second-highest law officer; senior advocate Meenakshi Arora appearing for Project 39A; and petitioner-in-person advocate Rishi Malhotra.
During the hearing, Malhotra relied on a Law Commission of India report to support his plea, placing before the court a comparative chart suggesting alternative and reportedly less painful modes of execution.
The Justice Nath-led Bench asked him to place on record a brief note on the report along with relevant case law.
Senior advocate Meenakshi Arora submitted that Project 39A had made detailed submissions on the alternative of lethal injection, particularly based on experiences from other jurisdictions such as the United States.
“It has been found that it’s not really successful,” Arora stated, referring to reported complications and failed executions.
“What is your suggestion then?” the Justice Nath-led Bench asked.
In response, the senior counsel suggested that the issue be left to an expert committee to explore possible alternatives and gather more data.
Attorney General R. Venkataramani told the Supreme Court that the issue is being examined by the Union government at the highest level and that certain committees have already been constituted to look into the matter.
Taking note of his submissions, the Justice Nath-led Bench clarified that if the Centre feels the need to return to the top court after further examination, it would be at liberty to do so.
Ultimately, the apex court reserved its order and directed all parties to file their brief notes and written submissions within three weeks.
The PIL challenges the provision prescribing execution by hanging, contending that the method causes “prolonged pain and suffering” and is inconsistent with evolving standards of human dignity under Article 21 of the Constitution.
In an earlier hearing, the Supreme Court had questioned the Centre’s reluctance to consider lethal injection as an alternative to hanging, remarking that the government “is not willing to change” despite changing times.
According to the petitioner, death by hanging can take around 40 minutes, whereas lethal injection or shooting leads to death within five minutes, causing significantly less pain. In October 2017, the top court had issued notice to the Centre, noting the contention of the petitioner that the convict whose life has to end because of the conviction and the sentence should not be compelled to suffer the pain of hanging. — IANS
