DEATH penalty is the ultimate penalty on a man whose culpability may often be relative. It denies the condemned man his natural right to live and a chance to make amends. Capital Punishment is a legacy of the British Raj and ardently being followed by us. Some author rightly points out that death penalty is a sophisticated cold-blooded extreme cruelty. In India, both sentence and clemency are reduced due to dirty politics. Judicial delays are a blot on our democratic credentials. One would agree that the death penalty continues to maintain the support of a majority of the public but we must remember that we live in a time when respect for the sanctity of life is continually diminishing.
Since our criminal justice system is not foolproof, there is a danger of an innocent person being wrongfully punished. As capital punishment is not totally justified either, it must be abolished and replaced by some other form of stringent deterrent.
Vinod C. Dixit
B-15 Jyotikalash Society
B/H Sundervan
Ahmedabad, India
