On Wednesday, the Supreme Court upheld the enhancement of the sentence from 12 years to 20 years in a gang rape case under Section 376D of the IPC, observing that a punishment below the statutory minimum cannot be permitted to continue merely because the State did not challenge it separately. The Court refused to interfere with the Sikkim High Court’s decision enhancing the sentence, stressing that courts are duty-bound to correct punishments that are contrary to law.
The convicts had approached the High Court challenging their conviction and argued before the Apex Court that their own appeal could not result in a harsher punishment. They relied on an earlier judgment which held that Appellate Courts ordinarily should not place an accused in a worse position in an appeal filed by them. The State, however, contended that the Trial Court had committed a clear legal error by awarding only 12 year’s imprisonment despite the amended Section 376D of the IPC mandating a minimum sentence of 20 years for gang rape offences. It was argued that the issue was not one of mere inadequacy of sentence, but of a punishment imposed in direct violation of the statute.
The Division Bench of Justice B V Nagarathna and Justice Satish Chandra Sharma agreed with the State and held that the High Court rightly exercised its revisional jurisdiction under Sections 397 and 401 of the CrPC after issuing notice to the accused on enhancement of sentence. The Court observed, “What is the rule of law? The sentence imposed must be correct.” Distinguishing the earlier precedent relied upon by the petitioners, the Bench held that the principle against worsening an accused’s position in their own appeal cannot apply where the Trial Court itself imposed a sentence below the mandatory minimum prescribed by law.
Consequently, holding that continuation of such a sentence would amount to sustaining an illegality, the Apex Court dismissed the petitions and upheld the enhanced sentence of 20 year's rigorous imprisonment.
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