Politics
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Supreme Court keeps hanging as the execution method
The Hindu··18 Aug
The Supreme Court on 18 August dismissed a petition seeking to end hanging and replace it with methods such as lethal injection. Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta heard the 2017 plea by advocate Rishi Malhotra. The petition challenged Section 354(5) of the old Criminal Procedure Code, now Section 393(5) of the BNSS. Hanging remains the statutory method.
Prism
What It Means For You
- If you follow death-penalty procedure, hanging by the neck remains the method under Indian law after the 18 August ruling.
- Anyone tracking prison administration can note the court still allows the Centre to study alternatives through an expert body.
- If you read Article 21 cases, the bench found the present record insufficient to strike down the hanging provision.
What's Happening
- On 18 August 2026, Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta dismissed a plea to abolish hanging as the mode of execution.
- The petition had sought replacement with lethal injection, shooting, electrocution or a gas chamber.
- The court said the Union may still review alternatives through experts.
What The 1983 Deena Judgment Still Decides
- In Deena, a Constitution Bench upheld hanging as a valid mode of carrying out a death sentence.
- Section 354(5) of the CrPC, now Section 393(5) of the BNSS, directs that a condemned prisoner be hanged till dead.
- The 2017 petition by Rishi Malhotra was reserved in January 2026 and decided this week.
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