JOIN USThe Supreme Court said on Friday that the President or the Governor has to consider the magnitude of crime while deciding mercy pleas of death row convicts.
A Bench of Justices G S Singhvi and S J Mukhopadhaya rejected the argument advanced on behalf of Punjab terrorist D P S Bhullar for clemency due to inordinate delay in deciding his petition.
“If the enormity of the crime is such that a large number of innocent people are killed without rhyme or reason, then too, award of extreme penalty of death will be justified. All these factors have to be taken into consideration by the President or the Governor… not to entertain the prayer for mercy in such cases cannot be characterised as arbitrary or unreasonable and the court cannot exercise power of judicial review only on the ground of undue delay,” the Bench said.
Senior advocate K T S Tulsi, representing Bhullar, as well as noted jurists Ram Jethmalani and T R Andhyarujina, appearing as amicus curiae in the case, submitted that long delay in the disposal of Bhullar’s petition should be treated as sufficient for commutation of the sentence of death into life imprisonment.
They also pointed out the petitioner had become mentally sick due to the prolonged detention. “The thrust of the argument of the learned senior counsel is that inordinate delay in disposal of mercy petition has rendered the sentence of death cruel, inhuman and degrading and this is nothing short of another punishment inflicted upon the condemned prisoner,” they argued. The court, however, was not impressed. “Though the argument appears attractive, on a deeper consideration of all the facts, we are convinced that the present case is not a fit one for exercise of the power of judicial review for quashing President’s decision.