BACHAN SINGH v. STATE OF PUNJAB

Capital punishment is one of the most crucial matters and touches on matters of individual liberty and statecraft. In the case Bachan Singh v. State of Punjab the Supreme Court of India deliberated on whether the death penalty’s constitutional and laid out numerous crucial principles in death penalty jurisprudence. The Constitution Bench of the supreme court held that while life imprisonment should be the norm the death penalty was an exception and was not outright unconstitutional. The Supreme Court validated the constitutionality of Section 302 IPC by a verdict of four to one. While Bachan Singh is more of a confirmation that the death penalty does not inherently violate any of the rights provided by the constitution, the judgment laid down guidelines for sentencing and that aggravating and mitigating circumstances must be taken into account by the court. It holds significance to this day as the old penal code and procedures have since been replaced by the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS) and the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS). Section 103 BNS covers punishment for murder and 393(3) BNSS requires the courts to note down reasons for a death sentence. The constitutional principles from Bachan Singh continue to have relevance in the new criminal law system.