The division judge bench of Chief Justice of India Uday Umesh Lalit, Justice S. Ravindra Bhat, and Justice Pamidighantam Sri Narasimha of the apex court in the case of B.A. Umesh Vs Union Of India & Ors commuted the punishment of death sentence to life imprisonment of a minimum sentence of 30 years,
BRIEF FACTS
The factual matrix of the case is that the appellant was convicted by the trial court under sections 302, 376, and 392 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, and the trial court awarded the punishment of death sentence, subject to confirmation by the High Court. After that, the appellant was immediately transferred and kept in solitary confinement. The high court also confirmed the death sentence. Thereafter, the appeal was filed before the apex court and the same was dismissed by the court. The appellant also preferred a review petition and the same was also dismissed. Thereafter, the mercy petition was also rejected by the Hon’ble President.
It was submitted before the hon’ble court that the appellant had been kept in solitary confinement right from the decision of the Sessions Court, directions were issued to the District Judge, Belgaum.
COURT’S OBSERVATION
The hon’ble court put the reliance upon the judgment titled Sunil Batra vs. Delhi Administration & Ors and it was held that the benefit of commutation was, however, granted in Ajay Kumar Pal on the ground that the solitary confinement was against the principles laid down in Sunil Batra and also on the ground of delay. Having considered the entirety of matter, in our view, the impact of solitary confinement were obviously evident in the instant case, as would be clear from the letter given by the medical professional on 6.11.2011 and the communication emanating from the jail on 8.11.2011. The incarceration in solitary confinement thus did show ill effects on the well-being of the appellant. In the backdrop of these features of the matter, in our view, the appellant is entitled to have the death sentence imposed upon him to be commuted to death sentence to life.
The apex court commuted the death sentence awarded to the appellant to the sentence of life imprisonment with a rider that he shall undergo minimum sentence of 30 years and if any application for remission is moved on his behalf, the same shall be considered on its own merits only after he has undergone actual sentence of 30 years. If no remission is granted, it goes without saying that as laid down by this Court in Gopal Vinayak Godse vs. State of Maharashtra, the sentence of imprisonment for life shall mean till the remainder of his life.
CASE NAME- B.A. Umesh Vs Union Of India & Ors
CITATION- CRIMINAL APPEAL NO.1892 OF 2022
CORUM- Chief Justice of India Uday Umesh Lalit, Justice S. Ravindra Bhat, and Justice Pamidighantam Sri Narasimha
DATE- 04.11.22
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