Is capital punishment effective in bringing down crime rates?

written by Narsi Benwal December 29, 2018

Mumbai: Even if the death sentence is legal and constitutionally valid, it is not the punishment for any crime. The history has proved how capital punishment has failed to be deterrent in the society as, despite convicts being hanged, crimes continue to take place in the society.

The debate on the abolition of death sentence has caught pace once again after the Bombay High Court, last week, confirmed the capital punishment of Chandrabhan Sanap, who had raped and killed Esther Anuhya, a software engineer. The judgment delivered by the bench of Justices Ranjit More and Bharati Dangre also refers to the observations of Justice Kurien Joseph of the Supreme Court, who sparked the latest debate on the death sentence. In a judgment, Justice Joseph delivered on his retirement day, he expressed the need of the hour to review the if death penalty as a punishment is necessary, especially its purpose and practice.’

The death sentence is vehemently opposed by advocate Navkiran Singh, a human rights lawyer, who thinks India will require at least one century for abolishing capital punishment. While speaking exclusively to The Free Press Journal, Singh said, “No punishment is deterrent to others as nobody cares. Why kill? Will hanging a person bring down the crime rates? The problem is we are not trying to find out the reasons as to why people are resorting to crime.” “We as a society are too good than that of western countries. At least our rehabilitation system still works. We do not have a large number of repeat offenders as compared to that of the western world. Still, we are continuing with this punishment whereas they (western countries) have abolished it,” said Singh, the general secretary of Lawyers for Human Rights International (LHRI).

The LHRI is a worldwide organisation fighting for human rights. It strongly demands the abolition of death punishment from India. According to Singh, Indians need to learn from Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi, who pardoned the killers of their father and former PM Rajiv Gandhi. “We live in a country where reactions are immediate. Ours is an immature democracy. We need to learn a lot from Rahul and Priyanka (Gandhi) how they pardoned killers of their father. I think making citizens understand this will take another century,” Singh added. “One has to look at the fact that even if death sentence is imposed on certain persons, will the crime rates come down? Take example of Delhi gang rape case wherein death has been pronounced and even confirmed by the top court. Still we can see rape cases being reported daily,” Singh said.

Justice (retd). P B Sawant of the Supreme Court, however, thinks death sentence must be given only in specific cases which leaves no room for any other punishment. “I believe death is the only punishment for serial killers, contract killers and so on. These are basically persons who do not think or hesitate even for a second before killing a human being. Such people deserve such a punishment,” Justice Sawant said. Justice Sawant further opined that in cases of gang rape or death after rape, death sentence is the only option. “Such offences need to be stopped and the same can be stopped only when most deterrent punishment is imposed on the wrong doers. Also, even if one accept the argument that there can be an alternative to death sentence, I do not think there can be a stern punishment than this,” said Justice Sawant, who had sent a serial killer to gallows in 1970s, when he was the judge of the Bombay High Court. “There is no other punishment as stern as death. Also, there is no point in letting such people live in the jails. Thus, death sentence cannot be totally abolished,” Justice Sawant said.

Source: https://www.freepressjournal.in/mumbai/is-capital-punishment-effective-in-bringing-down-crime-rates/1424515 (Accessed 29 December 2018)

Bombay HC upholds death penalty of woman techie's killer (Maharashtra)

20 DECEMBER 2018 Last Updated at 8:24 PM | SOURCE: PTI 

Mumbai, Dec 20 The Bombay High Court Thursday confirmed the death penalty awarded to a 30-year-old man for the rape and murder of a woman techie, saying the maximum punishment was appropriate in the case, considering "increasing incidents of crime against women" in India. Chandrabhan Sanap, was pronounced guilty by a special court in 2015 and awarded the death sentence for the rape and murder of the 23-year-old software professional who was employed with a leading IT firm in Mumbai. A bench of justices Ranjit More and Bharati Dangre said while the 2012 (Delhi) gang rape case -- where the victim was a paramedical student -- brought in a criminal amendment to make rape laws stricter, incidents such as the Shakti Mills rape case here and countless other cases of sexual assault continued to take place across the nation.

Esther Anuhya (Victim)

"The increasing incidents (of crime against women) have led to the entire womenfolk in the country questioning their safety. They expect the legislature and the judiciary to restore their faith in the system," the bench said. The judges described the convict as a "menace to society" and said rising crime against women should be tackled on all fronts. "Crime against women, which are on the rise, need to be tackled on all fronts in a manner which should respond to the society's cry for justice against such criminals. "The victim was done to death by the accused for no fault of her own, except for a reason that she is a woman and she fell prey to the sinister design of the accused to fulfil his lust. The said attitude of the accused, according to us, deserves a death sentence," the bench said.

The verdict came following an appeal filed by Sanap, who had challenged an October 2015 order of the trial court convicting and sentencing him to death on charges of rape, kidnap and murder. The Maharashtra government had filed a plea seeking that Sanap's death sentence be ratified by the high court. As per the prosecution, on January 5, 2014, the victim reached the Lokmanya Tilak Terminus railway station in suburban Mumbai from her native place in Andhra Pradesh after visiting her parents during a small break from work. Around 5 am, she met Sanap outside the station and he offered to drop her to YWCA hostel in suburban Andheri, where she stayed, on his motorbike in return for Rs 300. She agreed to his offer. However, on the way Sanap took her to a secluded spot near Kanjurmarg, raped and killed her, said the prosecution.

Chandrabahan Sanap

He partially burnt her dead body and dumped it in the bushes off the Eastern Express Highway, where it was found by the victim's family on January 14 that year. While Sanap denied all charges against him, the trial court convicted him, holding the case falls in the "rarest of rare" category and thus, warranted the death sentence. On Thursday, the high court agreed with the trial court order and held that the case was the rarest of rare one and that the "enormity" of Sanap's crime had "shocked the conscience of the society". "The offence of murder was committed for a petty achievement of satisfying the lust of the accused (Sanap). He was barbaric, and showed no regard to the life of a happless young girl," the bench said. The judges also dimissed the defence's plea for leniency on the ground of Sanap's good conduct as an under trial. They said Sanap was "a menace to the society" and that he showed no possibility of reformation. The bench also lamented that women in the country were having to face rampant attacks on their safety and wellbeing. "In the modern scenario, women don't expect to be worshipped. However, they surely expect to be able to breathe safe, and feel safe in and outside of their houses," the bench said in its 167-page verdict.

Source: https://www.outlookindia.com/newsscroll/bombay-hc-upholds-death-penalty-of-woman-techies-killer/1444011 (Accessed 25 December 2018)

Techie rape-murder trial botched up: Defence (Maharashtra)

TNN | Nov 2, 2018, 03.13 AM IST 

Swati Deshpande

MUMBAI: It was a "botched up" trial argued defence counsel Niteen Pradhan who appeared for Chandrabhan Sanap convicted and sentenced to death by hanging for the rape and murder of a young techie, Esther Anhuya. Pradhan, pleading against death confirmation for Sanap argued that the conviction itself ought to be set aside.

Esther Anhuya

Anuhya (24), an engineer was offered a lift by Sanap to her hostel in Andheri when she arrived at Lokmanya Tilak Terminus on January 5, 2014. Sanap raped and killed her and then set her body on fire. By law, a death sentence has to be confirmed by the high court. Pradhan's submissions before a bench of Justices Ranjit More and Bharati Dangre of Bombay high court were at a hearing for confirmation of death sentence and his appeal against conviction. His contention was that digital evidence in the form of CCTV footage produced by the prosecution in the trial court was inadmissible for want of a certificate under section 65b of the Evidence Act. The prosecution had relied on CCTV footage to nail its case against Sanap. 

Chandrabhan Sanap

The defence case was also that the trial proceeded in parts with evidence recorded in the absence of the accused who was unwell. Pradhan argued that even after he was certified to be fit he was still not produced.

Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/techie-rape-murder-trial-botched-up-defence/articleshowprint/66468865.cms (Accessed 25 December 2018)

TCS techie rape, murder case: Driver Chandrabhan Sanap sentenced to death

India Today in Mumbai October 30, 2015 UPDATED: October 30, 2015 18:23 IST

A Mumbai court on Friday awarded death sentence to Chandrabhan Sanap, who was convicted of rape and murder of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) techie in the city last year. 

Mumbai court on Friday awarded death sentence to Chandrabhan Sanap, who was convicted of rape and murder of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) techie in the city last year. Announcing the quantum of punishment, the a Mumbai Sessions Court termed the case as rarest of rare. Software engineer Esther Anuhya, who was employed with TCS in Mumbai, was raped and murdered, by Sanap in January 2014.

Anuhya, 23, hailed from Andhra Pradesh, had gone to her native place to celebrate Christmas and New Year. While returning to Mumbai, she had alighted at Lokmanya Tilak Terminus on January 5 after which she went missing. Her decomposed body was found off the Eastern Express Highway on January 16. After scrutiny of 36 CCTVs' footages at the railway station and grilling of about 2,500 people, investigators stumbled upon Sanap, who confessed to have killed Anuhya after a failed rape attempt. According to police, Sanap spotted Anuhya sitting alone at the railway station and offered to drop her off at Andheri on his two-wheeler. Sanap took her to an isolated spot and strangled her when she resisted his attempt to rape her.

Source: https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/tcs-techie-rape-murder-case-driver-chandrabhan-sanap-sentenced-to-death-270567-2015-10-30 (Accessed on 19 December 2018)