Abolish Death Penalty India: alias

Thursday, December 20, 2018

Death sentence awarded to Shramjieevi Express blast accused (Uttar Pradesh)

Binay Singh

TNN | Jul 30, 2016, 06.15 PM IST

VARANASI: After 11 years of trial the 2005 Shramjeevi Express blast accused Mohammed Alamgir alias Ronny was awarded capital punishment by the Jaunpur court on Saturday. The decision of another accused Obedur Rahman alias Babu Bhai will be pronounced on August 2. A powerful blast had ripped a boggy of the Delhi bound Shramjeevi Express near Harpalganj crossing in Jaunpur district on July 28, 2005 in which 12 passengers were killed and over 18 were injured.

The Additional District and Sessions Judge Budhiram Yadav holding Alamgir guilty of Shramjeevi blast case pronounced death punishment to him. According to the additional district government counsel Vijay Shankar Yadav, the court held Alamgir guilty of murder, attempt to murder and charges of Explosive Act and Railway Act. He was sentenced to death under section 302 of IPC, and 10 years rigorous imprisonment and fine of Rs. 5 lakh under section 307 of IPC. Besides, under Railway Act he was awarded life imprisonment and a fine of Rs. 5 lakh under section 150, five-year imprisonment under section 151, and three-year imprisonment under section 148. He was also awarded life imprisonment.

Both Alamgir and Obedur Rahman belong to Bangladesh and are lodged at Jaunpur district jail. Two other accused Nafikul Vishwas and Hilaluddin were jailed in Hyderabad for the hearing of some other case. The court had already pronounced conviction of Alamgir in Shramjeevi blast case on Friday. Elaborate security arrangements were made in the court premises during the pronouncement of decision.

Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/varanasi/Death-sentence-awarded-to-Shramjieevi-Express-blast-accused/articleshow/53466530.cms? (Accessed 20 December 2018)

Wednesday, December 19, 2018

Man gets death penalty for rape & murder of minor girl

Press Trust of India | Thane Last Updated at November 27, 2014 21:50 IST

A 24-year-old man was today awarded death sentence by a court for the rape and murder of a minor girl here in 2010. Parkash Zinak Nishad alias Kewat, a resident of Bhayander, a Mumbai suburb, was pronounced guilty by Thane Additional Sessions Judge S J Kale. The Judge awarded death sentence to Nishad under IPC Section 302 (murder), holding the case as the "rarest of the rare" and also varying jail terms, including life sentence, for other offences related to the case like rape and causing disappearance of evidence.

Additional Public Prosecutor Sanjay Lodhe said the six -year-old victim and the convict, who is married, were neighbours. On June 11, 2010 when the girl was playing outside her residence after dinner, Nishad picked her up and took to his house where he sexually assaulted the minor. He subsequently murdered the girl and dumped her body in a 'nullah' where it was spotted the next morning, the court was told. The accused was arrested while he was planning to flee from the locality.

The prosecution examined 13 witnesses, including the parents of the girl. The court accepted the submissions made by the prosecution like medical and DNA reports and also relied on circumstantial and other evidence before arriving at the guilty verdict.

Source: https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/man-gets-death-penalty-for-rape-murder-of-minor-girl-114112701335_1.html (Accessed on 19 December 2018)

The Death Penalty Scenario in India

India is one of 193 countries that retains the death penalty. Some judges have delivered landmark verdicts upholding the rights of death row prisoners, while debates continue advocating abolition or reform of sentencing policies. The Indian government remains committed to retention, asserting executions occur only in “rarest of rare” cases. The death penalty applies to crimes including murder, kidnapping, terrorism, desertion, inducement to suicide of a minor or mentally-retarded person, and in certain cases of rape. Outrage over child rape and murder has intensified these discussions. After an unofficial eight-year moratorium, the government executed Ajmal Kasab (Mumbai attacks) in 2012 and Afzal Guru (Parliament attack) in 2013, both covertly and immediately after mercy petitions were rejected. Prior to this, Dhananjoy Chatterjee was executed in 2004 after 13 years on death row. Following these, many mercy petitions have been rejected, creating fear among death row convicts. Courts continue to hand down death sentences at an increasing rate. Empirical studies highlight the plight of death row prisoners. The India Exclusion Report 2017-18 found fair trial rights largely denied, with convicts often marginalized by caste, religion, poverty, and education. The Death Penalty Research Project (2015) documented socio-economic profiles and experiences of death row prisoners. Dr. Reena Mary George’s studies (2014, 2009) emphasized poverty, social exclusion, and dignity as central to death row experiences, and examined the human rights impact of the penalty. According to the National Crime Records Bureau 2015, 101 prisoners were on death row, with many sentences commuted to life. The “rarest of rare” doctrine introduced by the Supreme Court in the 1980s has not substantially limited death sentences, which have increased over the decades. Justice Joseph (2018) reaffirmed the Bachan Singh judgment but urged restriction of the death penalty to only those cases meeting its criteria. While updating the blog and conducting my own empirical studies, I observed the heinous nature of the crimes that were committed and thought about the families, about their loss, about the victims who for no fault of their own died. If I lost my relative or a dear friend, would I still oppose death penalty and would I still advocate to abolish the death sentence? Having worked in the criminal justice system and also having the seen the other side, where often it is the marginalized, vulnerable and oppressed who are on death row makes me want to advocate for abolition of this punishment. Victims should definitely get justice for their loss, for their pain. No one should escape the rule of law. As long as humanity exists; crime will exist. Should we not re-consider our sentencing policies? Reena Mary George