Rarest of Rare Doctrine

News: Recently, two separate murder cases resulted in contrasting verdicts, shedding light on how Indian courts interpret and apply the ‘rarest of rare’ doctrine while awarding the death penalty.

About Rarest of Rare Doctrine

1. The Doctrine of Rarest of Rare is a principle adopted in India to guide courts in deciding between the death penalty and life imprisonment.

2. It was first discussed in Jagmohan Singh vs. State of U.P. (1972), where the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the death penalty.

3. The court ruled that capital punishment is constitutional under Article 21 (right to life) and does not violate Article 14 (equality before the law) or Article 19 (fundamental rights).

4. The Supreme Court formally established the ‘rarest of rare’ doctrine in Bachan Singh vs. State of Punjab (1980) in which it held that the death penalty should only be imposed in exceptional cases. However, it did not clearly define what qualifies as ‘rarest of rare’.

5. The Supreme Court laid down a five-factor framework for determining when a case qualifies as ‘rarest of rare’:

a) Manner of murder – If committed in an extremely brutal, grotesque, or revolting way that shocks society.

b) Motive of murder – When the crime is committed with extreme depravity, such as for political gains or sadistic pleasure.

c) Socially abhorrent nature– When the crime targets vulnerable individuals or communities, causing widespread outrage.

d) Magnitude of the crime – When multiple murders are committed, showing extreme criminality.

e) Personality of the offender and victim– If the victim is a child, elderly, woman, or otherwise helpless.

6. The Supreme Court struck down Section 303 of the IPC, which prescribed a mandatory death penalty for life convicts who commit murder. It ruled that all murders should be judged under Section 302, which allows discretion between the death penalty and life imprisonment.

7. Current Status: The death penalty remains constitutionally valid but is only applied in exceptional cases.  Courts must carefully examine aggravating and mitigating factors before awarding capital punishment.