AGI Venkataramani Proposes Expert Committee on Execution Method, SC Informed

Attorney General R. Venkataramani has written to the Centre, informing them of the proposal to establish a committee of experts to examine the current mode of execution of death row convicts by hanging in the country.

This information was brought before the Supreme Court on Tuesday.

Senior advocate Sonia Mathur, representing the Centre, stated that the Attorney General for India had sent a letter to the Union Ministry of Home Affairs, seeking their suggestions on forming the committee, and the recommendations would be presented in the court.

Ms. Mathur also mentioned that the Attorney General was unavailable and traveling, requesting a deferment of the hearing.

In response, Chief Justice D. Y. Chandrachud and Justices J. B. Pardiwala and Manoj Misra directed to list the matter on a Friday after two weeks.

Earlier, the Centre had informed the top court that it was considering the establishment of a committee of experts to assess the current method of execution of death row convicts by hanging. The Attorney General clarified that the finalization of names for the proposed panel was underway, and he would be able to provide a response after some time.

On March 21, the Apex Court had expressed its inclination to consider forming a committee of experts to examine whether the mode of execution by hanging is proportionate and less painful. The court sought a better data from the Centre on issues concerning the mode of execution.

The matter was brought to the court through a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by lawyer Rishi Malhotra in 2017, seeking the abolition of the present practice of hanging death row convicts.

The petitioner proposed alternative methods such as “intravenous lethal injection, shooting, electrocution, or gas chamber,” claiming that hanging infringes on the dignity of the convict even in death. Mr. Malhotra cited examples of other countries that have adopted different methods of execution, pointing out that thirty-six states in the US have already abandoned hanging as a means of execution.