CHENNAI: Most death sentences awarded by trial courts in Tamil Nadu are later overturned or reduced by higher courts, with the Madras High Court commuting or setting aside a majority of such punishments in 2025, according to a national report.
The Death Penalty in India: Annual Statistics Report 2025, released in February 2026 by The Square Circle Clinic at the NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad, examined death sentence cases decided in 2025 and traced trends over the past decade, based on judgments of trial courts, HCs and the Supreme Court.
The findings point to a sharp gap between trial court sentencing and outcomes at the appeal stage in Tamil Nadu. During 2025, the Madras HC confirmed only one death sentence from the state, while commuting the death sentences of eight persons in five cases. Several other death sentences imposed by trial courts did not receive confirmation, reflecting a nationwide pattern.
According to the report, higher courts frequently intervene after identifying shortcomings at the investigation and trial stages, including weak evidence and non-compliance with constitutionally-mandated sentencing procedures.
The sole confirmation from Tamil Nadu came in a Tirunelveli murder case linked to the 2022 killing of R Vaikundam. The victim was murdered by R Selvaraj and his associates in retaliation for having testified against them in a 2016 attempt-to-murder case. While the Madras HC upheld the conviction and death sentence, the report notes that the judgment did not comply with the detailed mitigation assessment required under SC sentencing guidelines.
“Trial courts function under intense social and public pressure, and in many cases, while the conviction may stand, the evidence does not justify the death sentence,” said V Suresh, advocate and national general secretary of the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL).
The apex court has repeatedly held that death sentences can be imposed or confirmed only after a separate sentencing hearing assessing personal circumstances, mental health and the possibility of reform.
Echoing this view, Professor Ramodoss, head of the department of criminology, University of Madras, said courts must carefully balance aggravating and mitigating factors before confirming a death sentence, adding that mitigation assessments should ideally be carried out by trained experts.
The report also highlights instances where death row convicts were acquitted after spending several years under sentence. Nationally, trial courts sentenced 128 persons to death in 94 cases in 2025, including 10 women. While Uttar Pradesh recorded the highest number with 20 death sentence cases in 2025, Karnataka and West Bengal recorded six cases each, followed by TN with five cases during the year, with most of the death sentences later commuted on appeal.