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| Why Clemency? | | | Vikram Gour | 9/14/2011 8:22:27 PM |
| Encouraged by long delays, on account of the political considerations, in giving effect to the Judgments of Capital Punishments from the Apex Court of the country, the effected parties have come forth with appeals, one after another, for seeking clemency from the President on humanitarian considerations without bothering about the intensity of crimes committed by the criminals.
As per the official reports there are more than 50-such cases pending for execution for reasons only known to the government of the day. The reasons cited by the government for not carrying out the executions are frivolous and untenable.
Recent noise about withholding the execution of killers of Rajiv Gandhi, former PM of the country and that of Afzal Guru (the master mind behind attack on Indian Parliament that resulted in killing of 13-security personal while fighting against the militants/terrorists) and ‘slow motion’ lingering on of Kasab’s trail and appeals in courts and now his supporters within the country trying to put up a mercy petition before the President of India for clemency have given rise to a fierce public debate. Demands pleading for clemency for Afzal Guru have come from persons no less than a senior minister in the Indian Cabinet, responsible main stream political party (NC/PDP) and Chief Minister and his party in J&K. In the other case the demand for clemency of murderers of Rajiv Gandhi has come from National Political Party (DMK) supported with a resolution of the TN assembly. How far can such a demand even be considered calls for a very serious thought.
This process of waving of the Death Penalty of murderers of Rajiv Gandhi was initiated by none other than Rajiv Gandhi’s family itself. After consultations within the family, Priyanka Gandhi went to meet the convicted woman in jail and graciously announced that she would like to pardon the convict and would like that her death penalty be waived off. Priyanka forgot that Rajiv Gandhi was not murdered because he was her father but as head of the Indian Government as PM of India who took discions against ‘Tamilian Interests in Srilanka’ and was likely to be the PM again. This obviously was a crime committed against the Indian Nation. Priayanka had no moral right to pardon the convict and ask for clemency of her death penalty. This act of hers was also an unwanted interference in due process of law against a criminal who committed crime against the nation by killing a political head of a national party. And all this crime was committed after a long well considered plan for years by those involved in committing the crime.
It is very well known that whenever a capital punishment is awarded to any criminal for any crime, due process of law is followed right from lowest court to the highest court of the country. The courts thoroughly scrutinize validity of the investigation process, its genuineness and authenticity. The defense completely tears apart loopholes, if any, in investigation and finally the Judges come to decide about the punishment keeping in view the constitutional obligation of imposing death penalty in ‘rarest of the rare’ cases. The process is followed upto the Supreme Court which not only reviews the entire process of law followed at the lower levels but also uses its own authority to review the penalty imposed by the lower courts strictly in accordance with the provisions of the established law of the land. There is, therefore, no chance of any flaw in imposing the penalty on the criminal for the crime that has been committed. Besides huge amount of public money is spent for years on the whole legal process involving the safety and security of the criminal, his medical look after and even his ‘legal assistance’ is financed by the state, especially in the cases aided and abetted by forces outside the countries.
It has always been shouted from the house tops both by the politicians and the men in government that ‘no body is above law’ and all are equal before the law. Then how come, ignoring all the genuiness of the legal meticulously followed court process that we so proudly uphold in our system in the highest esteem, a Clemency Appeal based purely on political considerations of the ruling dispensation is held valid for submission before the President? And would the reversal of the punishment awarded by the Apex Court of the country by the President not amount to casting aspersions on the Court’s Judgment?
It would, therefore, be in fitness of things if the Clemency Appeals for remittance of the sentences imposed by Supreme Court are taken out the Presidential Powers of granting clemency especially in case of Sedition, war against the country, terrorist activists who kill innocent people, militants who act on behalf of foreign powers to destabilize the country, elements from within the country who under sinister plans help such powers that are enemy of the Nation etc. Once the legal procedure is completely followed the sentence imposed should be executed without any inference by any agency.
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