A devastating hour of darkness
The cold evening of Delhi on 16th December, 2012 could not have even remotely planted the feeling in the twenty-three year old lady, a para-medical student, who had gone with her friend to watch a film at PVR Select City Walk 2 Mall, Saket, that in the next few hours, the shattering cold night that was gradually stepping in would bring with it the devastating hour of darkness.
-- Justices Dipak Misra and Ashok Bhushan
Common intent of the accused
The chain of events described by the prosecutrix in her dying declarations coupled with the testimonies of the other witnesses clearly establish that as soon as the informant and the prosecutrix boarded the bus, the accused persons formed an agreement to commit heinous offences against the victim. Forcefully having sexual intercourse with the prosecutrix, one after the other, inserting iron rod in her private parts, dragging her by her hair and then throwing her out of the bus all establish the common intent of the accused to rape and murder the prosecutrix.
-- Justices Dipak Misra and Ashok Bhushan
Not the slightest doubt
Therefore, we do not have the slightest hesitation in holding that the trial court and the High Court have correctly considered the entire case on the touchstone of well-recognised principles for arriving at the conclusion of criminal conspiracy. The prosecution has been able to unfurl the case relating to criminal conspiracy by placing the materials on record and connecting the chain of circumstances. The relevant evidence on record lead to a singular conclusion that the accused persons are liable for criminal conspiracy and their confessions to counter the same deserve to be repelled.
-- Justices Dipak Misra and Ashok Bhushan
Humanly inconceivable cruelty
As further proven, they threw the informant and the deceased victim on the road in a cold winter night. After throwing the informant and the deceased victim, the convicts tried to run the bus over them so that there would be no evidence against them. They made all possible efforts in destroying the evidence by, inter alia, washing the bus and burning the clothes of the deceased and after performing the gruesome act, they divided the loot among themselves. As we have narrated the incident that has been corroborated by the medical evidence, oral testimony and the dying declarations, it is absolutely obvious that the accused persons had found an object for enjoyment in her and, as is evident, they were obsessed with the singular purpose sans any feeling to ravish her as they liked, treat her as they felt and, if we allow ourselves to say, the gross sadistic and beastly instinctual pleasures came to the forefront when they, after ravishing her, thought it to be just a matter of routine to throw her along with her friend out of the bus and crush them. The casual manner with which she was treated and the devilish manner in which they played with her identity and dignity is humanly inconceivable.
-- Justices Dipak Misra and Ashok Bhushan
Tsunami of shock
It sounds like a story from a different world where humanity has been treated with irreverence. The appetite for sex, the hunger for violence, the position of the empowered and the attitude of perversity, to say the least, are bound to shock the collective conscience which knows not what to do. It is manifest that the wanton lust, the servility to absolutely unchained carnal desire and slavery to the loathsome beastility of passion ruled the mindset of the appellants to commit a crime which can summon with immediacy “tsunami” of shock in the mind of the collective and destroy the civilised marrows of the milieu in entirety.
-- Justices Dipak Misra and Ashok Bhushan
Aggravating vs mitigating factors
When we cautiously, consciously and anxiously weigh the aggravating circumstances and the mitigating factors, we are compelled to arrive at the singular conclusion that the aggravating circumstances outweigh the mitigating circumstances now brought on record. Therefore, we conclude and hold that the High Court has correctly confirmed the death penalty and we see no reason to differ with the same.
-- Justices Dipak Misra and Ashok Bhushan
Woman immeasurably man’s superior
Honesty, pride, and self-esteem are crucial to the personal freedom of a woman. Social progress depends on the progress of everyone. Following words of the father of our nation must be noted at all times:
“To call woman the weaker sex is a libel; it is man’s injustice to woman. If by strength is meant moral power, then woman is immeasurably man’s superior. Has she not greater intuition, is she not more self-sacrificing, has she not greater powers of endurance, has she not greater courage? Without her, man could not be. If non-violence is the law of our being, the future is with woman. Who can make a more effective appeal to the heart than woman?”
-- Justice R Banumathi
Teach children to respect women
Right from childhood years’ children ought to be sensitized to respect women. A child should be taught to respect women in the society in the same way as he is taught to respect men. Gender equality should be made a part of the school curriculum. The school teachers and parents should be trained, not only to conduct regular personality building and skill enhancing exercise, but also to keep a watch on the actual behavioural pattern of the children so as to make them gender sensitized. The educational institutions, Government institutions, the employers and all concerned must take steps to create awareness with regard to gender sensitization and to respect women. Sensitization of the public on gender justice through TV, media and press should be welcomed.
-- Justice R Banumathi
Disregard minor contradictions
At the same time while dealing with cases of rape, the Court must act with utmost sensitivity and appreciate the evidence of prosecutrix in lieu of settled legal principles. Courts while trying an accused on the charge of rape, must deal with the case with utmost sensitivity, examining the broader probabilities of a case and it should not be swayed by minor contradictions and discrepancies in appreciation of evidence of the witnesses which are not of a substantial character. It is now well-settled that conviction for an offence of rape can be based on the sole testimony of the prosecutrix corroborated by medical evidence and other circumstantial evidence such 326 as the report of chemical examination, scientific examination etc., if the same is found natural and trustworthy.
-- Justice R Banumathi
Rape victim cannot be an accomplice
Persisting notion that the testimony of victim has to be corroborated by other evidence must be removed. To equate a rape victim to an accomplice is to add insult to womanhood. Ours is a conservative society and not a permissive society. Ordinarily a woman, more so, a young woman will not stake her reputation by levelling a false charge, concerning her chastity.
-- Justice R Banumathi
There will be discrepancies
Courts should not attach undue importance to discrepancies, where the contradictions sought to be brought up from the evidence of the prosecutrix are immaterial and of no consequence. Minor variations in the testimony of the witnesses are often the hallmark of truth of the testimony. Trivial discrepancies ought not to obliterate an otherwise acceptable evidence. Due to efflux of time, there are bound to be minor contradictions/discrepancies in the statement of the prosecutrix but such minor discrepancies and inconsistencies are only natural since when truth is sought to be projected through human, there are bound to be certain inherent contradictions.
-- Justice R Banumathi
Sentence must reflect society
Question of awarding sentence is a matter of discretion and has to be exercised on consideration of circumstances aggravating or mitigating in the individual cases. The courts are consistently faced with the situation where they are required to answer the new challenges and mould the sentence to meet those challenges. Protection of society and deterring the criminal is the avowed object of law. It is expected of the courts to operate the sentencing system as to impose such sentence which reflects the social conscience of the society. While determining sentence in heinous crimes, Judges ought to weigh its impact on the society and impose adequate sentence considering the collective conscience or society’s cry for justice. While considering the imposition of appropriate punishment, courts should not only keep in view the rights of the criminal but also the rights of the victim and the society at large.
-- -- Justice R Banumathi
Mitigating factors are slender
Crimes like the one before us cannot be looked with magnanimity. Factors like young age of the accused and poor background cannot be said to be mitigating circumstances. Likewise, post-crime remorse and post-crime good conduct of the accused, the statement of the accused as to their background and family circumstances, age, absence of criminal antecedents and their good conduct in prison, in my view, cannot be taken as mitigating circumstances to take the case out of the category of “rarest of rare cases”. The circumstances stated by the accused in their affidavits are too slender to be treated as mitigating circumstances.
-- Justice R Banumathi
Not even a hint of hesitation
In the present case, there is not even a hint of hesitation in my mind with respect to the aggravating circumstances outweighing the mitigating circumstances and I do not find any justification to convert the death sentence imposed by the courts below to ‘life imprisonment for the rest of the life’. The gruesome offences were committed with highest viciousness. Human lust was allowed to take such a demonic form.
-- Justice R Banumathi