SC rejects plea to replace hanging as execution mode

The Supreme Court of India has rejected a plea to replace the current method of capital punishment, hanging, with alternative methods such as lethal injection. In a bench led by Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta, the court found no scientific evidence to support the claim that hanging is more painful and traumatic compared to other execution methods.

Consequently, the court did not issue any directives regarding the petitioner's petition filed by senior advocate Rishi Malhotra. The court emphasized that there has been no instance of a mishap during hanging executions in India, while numerous mishaps have occurred in the United States, where lethal injection is also used as a method of execution in several states.

The bench clarified that the dismissal of the current writ petition should not be seen as an obstruction to future constitutional scrutiny if compelling scientific, medical, or empirical evidence emerges to demonstrate that the legal basis for the Deena decision has been materially altered by new developments. The court stressed that constitutional interpretation is dynamic and must adapt to both the evolution of constitutional doctrine and advancements in scientific knowledge.

The judgment will not prevent the Center from conducting a comprehensive review of the current execution method through an expert panel comprising legal experts, forensic medicine specialists, neuroscientists, penologists, and related professionals to determine if any alternative method of execution better achieves the constitutional goal of minimizing unnecessary pain while preserving the dignity of the condemned prisoner.