Victim's rights should be accounted before delivering justice:SC

New Delhi, July 16 (UNI) The Supreme Court has held that the courts must take into account the rights of the victim and society at large, while imposing punishment for a crime.

The apex court, while setting aside the Madhya Pardesh high court judgment reducing the sentence from ten years to five years in rape case involving a six year old girl said that the quantum of punishment must adequately respond to society's cry for justice.

Bench comprising Mr Justice Arijit Pasayat and Mr Justice Lokeshwar Singh Panta in its judgement dated July 14 ruled "If for extremely heinous crime of murder perpertrated in a very brutal manner without any provocation, most deterrent punishment is not given, the case of deterrent punishment will lose its relevance." On the point of reduction of sentence the apex court observed," In order to exercise the discretion of reducing the sentence the statutory requirement is that the court has to record " adequate and special reasons" in the judgment and not fanciful reasons which would permit the court to impose a sentence less than the prescribed minimum." The high court while reducing the sentence of convict Santosh Kumar had cited young age coupled with the fact that the accused was a member of ST.

The apex court, however ruled,"The physical scar may heal, but the mental scar will remains. When a woman modersly is out raged, what is inflicted is not merely physical injury but the deep sense of shame. The offender robs the victim of her most valuable and priceless possession that is dignity. In the instant case a child of six years is the victim. Law frowns upon such acts and provides for more stringent sentence as shall be dealt with infra." The court went on to conclude,"The courts are required to mould the sentencing system to meet the challenges. The contagion of lawlessness would undermine social order and lay it in ruins.

Protection of society and stamping out criminal proclivity must be the object of law's which must be achieved by imposing appropriate sentence." The top court restored the sentence of the convict under section 376 (2) (f)IPC (rape of a minor) to ten years and allowed the appeal of the state of Madhya Pardesh challenging the reduction of sentence.

UNI AKS SC SB RK1128