India's Apex Court Upholds Hanging for Death Penalty, Dismisses 'Painless' Methods Plea

In a significant ruling, the Supreme Court of India on Tuesday dismissed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) that sought to replace hanging with more 'painless' methods of executing death row convicts, such as lethal injection or electrocution. The top court's bench, comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta, found no compelling reason to revisit earlier judgments that upheld the constitutional validity of hanging as the primary method of execution, keeping the current system intact. This decision comes after years of debate and a previous instance in 2023 where the Supreme Court had asked the Union Government to consider more humane alternatives and potentially form an Expert Committee to study the matter. The petitioner, Senior Advocate Rishi Malhotra, had argued that hanging causes 'prolonged pain and suffering', violating a death row convict's right to a dignified death under Article 21 of the Constitution. However, the Court was not convinced that lethal injection offered any 'added advantage' over hanging, citing issues like botched executions reported elsewhere. While upholding the current method, the Supreme Court did leave a door open for the future, clarifying that its dismissal doesn't 'foreclose future constitutional scrutiny' if new and 'compelling scientific, medical, or empirical evidence' emerges. The ruling also reiterates that the Union Government remains free to undertake a comprehensive review of execution method through an Expert Committee, potentially paving the way for legislative action or further judicial consideration down the line.