The Rarest Of Rare Doctrine: Evolution, Challenges, And Future Prospects
- IJLLR Journal
- 4 hours ago
- 2 min read
Srijit Datta, University of Engineering and Management, Kolkata
ABSTRACT
The ‘Rarest of Rare Doctrine’ is a legal principle adopted by India to guide the courts in determining on which matters the award of the death penalty or capital punishment is necessary and is not required. This doctrine strictly aims to ensure that sentencing of the most severe punishment must be reserved only for the most heinous crime. Hence, it makes sentencing of capital punishment very rare. Currently, no statutory definition is provided for the doctrine of the ‘rarest of rare. ’ The award of such punishment and application of this doctrine completely depends on the facts and circumstances of a certain case, its brutality or heinousness of the crime, the conduct of the offender, and also the offender’s previous records of involvement in such heinous crimes. The term capital punishment or death penalty means the execution of a convicted offender following a court's sentencing for a heinous offense. It is the most severe punishment that is awardable to an accused only in a grave, exceptional offense. This doctrine was established by the Supreme Court in the case of Bachan Singh v. State of Punjab.1It stated that the death penalty can only be sentenced in grave, exceptional circumstances, where it is found that the offense is so heinous that no other punishment will be sufficient. Therefore, this doctrine suggests that a person who has committed such a heinous offense should also suffer the same consequences. The awarding of capital punishment creates a huge impact on the society as a whole, so that it instills fear in the society about what could be the consequences of committing such offences.
This paper, therefore, brackets the applicability of the ‘Rarest of Rare Doctrine’ in the cases of the death penalty in India. The primary objective of this paper is to analyze the legal evolution, judicial precedents, and current relevance of the doctrine of ‘Rarest and Rare. Overall, in this research, we concisely conclude by identifying the recent challenges and future ways to solve them regarding this doctrine in India.
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