The Supreme Court on Wednesday (October 15) expressed displeasure over the Centre’s unwillingness to accept a suggestion that death row convicts be given the option to choose lethal injection as a mode of execution.
During the hearing of a PIL seeking to abolish the current practice of executing a death row convict by hanging, the top court said that hanging was a very old procedure, and things have changed with time.
The petitioner placed the suggestion before a bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta, stating that the current method of execution by hanging should be replaced with the use of lethal injection.
However, after it was pointed out that the Centre, in its counter affidavit, have stated that providing an option to a convict may not be “feasible”, Justice Mehta said “Problem is, the government is not ready to evolve…it’s a very old procedure, things have changed over a period of time,” reported Live Law.
Senior Advocate Sonia Mathur, representing the Centre, then pointed out that the government’s reservation expressed in its counter-affidavit is ultimately based on the fact that the issue raised involves a policy decision. The court then adjourned the matter until November 11.
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Replace hanging with lethal injection: PIL
The PIL seeks to abolish the current practice of executing death row convicts by hanging. Describing the method of execution as one that involves “prolonged pain and suffering”, it prayed that hanging be replaced with intravenous lethal injection, shooting, electrocution or a gas chamber in which the condemned convict will die in minutes.
During the hearing, Advocate Rishi Malhotra (petitioner) argued for replacing hanging with lethal injection, pointing out that the latter has been adopted by 49 out of 50 states in the US.
“At least give an option to the condemned prisoner whether he wants hanging or lethal injection…lethal injection is quick, humane and decent, as opposed to hanging, which is cruel, barbaric and lingering…for 40 minutes, the body lingers on the rope”, Malhotra submitted as quoted by Live Law.. He pointed out that the option is given in the armed forces.
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The backdrop
The Supreme Court, in March 2023, contemplated setting up an expert committee and asked Attorney General R. Venkataramani to compile data on death by hanging.
The Court sought information on points including the impact of hanging, the pain caused, the period for death to take place, and the availability of resources to effectuate hanging.
In May, the Attorney General informed the Court that he had recommended the formation of an expert committee to decide whether better alternatives existed to execute the death penalty. He added that the government had been mulling over the members for the said expert committee.
