Well I had the issue on my mind for a very long time but you need a stimuli (Afzal Guru in this case). I am very well aware that its sensitive issue and everyone is entitled to have his/her opinion. Frankly I do not have a firm opinion on the issue but there are factors which push me sometime either on one side or the other.
I am still wondering where to start the thread from. Well as one of my cousin puts it, I too really have mad number of people in the friendlist on Facebook. Since FB has this status box which says "What's on your mind XYZ ? " which they have smartly modified over the time to "What's happening XYZ ?" after some infamous episodes ;-) , people tend to pour in their opinion freely and if they don't have any they just share what ever someone has posted without even making an effort to verify the credibility of the info.
I am not a psychologist but I do tend to observe people and form opinions and hypothesis as well. There are certain sect of people I know who irrespective of what is happening have to always either oppose the system/criticize it/rebel etc. I really do not know if the particular category of people add any value or are necessary for the society or not. I am not sure if they want to prove their individual identity by these actions.
While I do not deny that in the most civilized parts of the world capital punishments are either abolished or are rarely used. In the developing and under-development nations it more often heard of. But trying to prove ourselves as a part of civilized world shall we move away from justice ? I really do not know how a person's heart can change over time and if there is a way to verify it. But someone who can mercilessly kill people at will without even blinking an eye, how can he be let free or imprisoned for life where he serves 14 yrs and walks out again by proving his good conduct.
But yes again there is always history to prove things. The reason I started the thread was the angst I had for people asking for human rights and justice for people who did not know what these terms mean. Be it Afzal Guru, Ajmal Kasab, David Headley, the rapists in the Delhi gang rape case or any other Capital punishment may or may not justice for them. But I can assure it does work as a deterrent for others. Will it solve problems like this for ever? Might not, since there will always be some people who would not be impacted by efforts and bold actions like these, but then there would certainly be lessor people who would try doing it since they would know they won't be able to walk away just like that.
Does it mean that there would be no misuse of it, well I doubt that but you can't let people like Kasab out and expect them not to do what they did before. Neither do I have answer for - "Why do we kill people who kill people to show killing people is wrong ?".
1 comment:
India's stand on Capital Punishment can be substantiated with some recent developments.
Internally UN General Assembly recently voted for removal for capital punishment with 110 in favor and 39 against(including India)
Article 21 of our constitution entitles a fundamental right to Life. So any heinous crime directly violates this right.
Judges call in favor of capital punishment even though human rights of accused is at stake. There can't be provision for rights of accused for he/she has already violated the same of others via massacre.
Indian Capital punishment judgments are mostly based on bacchan sigh case which entitles capital punishment in rarest of case. While there was a diversion with Macchi singh case which gave nature and suffering and other criteria for the same, we again look towards Bacchan singh. This surely has opened up a debate of whether cases based on Macchi Singh are flawed.
Only limitation with the recent executions is that they were secretive in nature and the accused were not given an option of Judicial review which they are entitled to even after President rejection of mercy petition.
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