‘Can death row convicts pick execution method?’

The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the Union government to consider whether a condemned prisoner could be given the option of choosing between hanging and lethal injection, observing that methods of execution across the world have undergone significant change since the colonial-era practice of death by hanging was codified in India.

- Utkarsh Anand

A bench of justices Vikram ‘Nath and Sandeep Mehta made the observation while hearing a petition filed by advocate Rishi Malhotra, who has challenged the constitutional validity of Section 354(5) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, which mandates that a person sentenced to death “shall be hanged by the neck till he is dead.” This provision has been replaced by Section 393(5) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023.

“It (death by hanging) is an old procedure. Several things have changed in the meantime world over. Consider what Mr. Malhotra’s suggestions are,” the bench told senior advocate Sonia Mathur, appearing for the Centre, while suggesting that the government may consider reviewing the existing mode of execution.

Malhotra, pressing for reform, urged that even if the present method is retained, those facing capital punishment should be allowed to choose between hanging and lethal injection ~ the latter, he argued, being “a more dignified and humane way to die.”