Case: Dilip Premnarayan Tiwari  Vs. State Of Maharashtra

Shashidharan and this ought to have added as a spark which resulted in tornado. Dilip undoubtedly was a young person not even having crossed his 25 years of life and not having any criminal antecedent. If he became the victim of his wrong but genuine caste considerations, it would not justify the death sentence. The murders were the outcome of social issue like a marriage with a person of so-called lower caste. However, a time has come when we have to consider these social issues as relevant, while considering the death sentence in the circumstances as these. The caste is a concept which grips a person before his birth and does not leave him even after his death. The vicious grip of the caste, community, religion, though totally unjustified, is a stark reality. The psyche of the offender in the background of a social issue like an inter-caste-community marriage, though wholly unjustified would have to be considered in the peculiar circumstances of this case. 42. No doubt, the murder was brutal. However, it has been pointed out by Shri Gaurav Agrawal as also Shri Raj that this was not a diabolic murder nor had the murderers acted in depravity of their minds by disfiguring the bodies. The incident must have taken place barely within 10-15 minutes when they came, assaulted the family members and left. True it is that the two ladies who were assaulted were helpless and so were Krishnan and Prabhu. But when we weigh all the circumstances, particularly, about the mindset of Dilip, the cruel acts on the part of the accused would not justify the death sentence. The disturbed mental feeling or the constant feeling of injustice has been considered by this Court as a mitigating circumstance in Om Prakash v. State of Haryana [1999 (3) SCC 19 ] where the accused had committed the murder of seven persons. That is also an indicator to the fact that mere number of persons killed is not by itself a circumstance justifying the death sentence. In fact in one other case reported as Ram Pal v. State of U.P. [2003 (7) SCC 141 ] total 21 persons were killed as the accused trapped them in a house and burnt the house. Shri Karanjkar, appearing on behalf of the State very strongly contended as against this, that in the present case while four persons were killed, two helpless ladies were also assaulted and very seriously injured and it is only because the accused thought that those two ladies had died and left, that the lives of Deepa and Indira were spared. Therefore, in the circumstances of this case, we must lean in favour of the death sentence. In a death sentence matter, it is not only the nature of the crime but the background of the criminal, his psychology, his social conditions and his mindset for committing the offence are also relevant. No doubt in Ravji alias Ram Chandra v. State of Rajasthan [1996 (2) SCC 175 ], this Court held as under: "...The crimes had been committed with utmost cruelty and brutality without any provocation, in a calculated manner. It is the nature and gravity of the crime but not the criminal, which are germane for consideration of appropriate punishment in a criminal trial. The Court will be failing in its duty if appropriate punishment is not awarded for a crime which has been committed not only against the individual victim but also against the society to which the criminal and victim belong. The punishment to be awarded for a crime must not be irrelevant but it should conform to and be consistent with the atrocity and brutality with which the crime has been perpetrated, the enormity of the crime warranting public abhorrence and it should "respond to the societys cry for justice against the criminal"...." 43. It is also true that this case was followed in as many as six cases where the death sentence was approved of. However, in his judgment reported as Santosh Kumar Satishbhushan Bariyar v. State of Maharashtra [JT 2009 (7) SC 248 ] Hon. Sinha, J. pointed out that this judgment is per incuriam as the law laid down therein is contrary to the law laid down in Bachan Singhs case (cited supra) where the principle has fallen out to the effect that the Court should not confine its consideration principally or merely to the circumstances connected with the particular crime but also give due consideration to the circumstances of the criminal. It is because of this that we have ventured to consider the mindset of accused No.1, Dilip and the vicious caste grip that might have catapulted the crime committed by him. We would, thus, follow Bachan Singhs case (cited supra) and the principles therein rather than following the narrow approach given in Ravjis case (cited supra). 44. Once we decide not to award the death sentence to accused No.1, Dilip, the accused No.3, Manoj also deserves not to be given death sentence. Even he is a person without any criminal antecedents and he appears to have joined the company of Dilip only out of his commitment as he was shown to be a resident of the same house. We, therefore, do not think that even he deserves death penalty. Accused No.2, Sunil has comparatively a lesser role. Admittedly, he has not assaulted Krishnan or Prabhu, to begin with. Who has assaulted Prabhu and Abhayraj is still not clear, as it could also be that in the assaults the leading role could have been taken by the unknown accused. In that view, he also does not deserve the death sentence. The question is then how are these accused persons to be dealt with. Ordinarily, they would be liable to be awarded the life imprisonment. 45. However, in the peculiar circumstances of this case, mere life imprisonment which is capable of resulting into 20 years of imprisonment or 14 years of actual imprisonment may not be adequate punishment for these accused persons.

Decision (1 = appeal accepted, 0 = rejected): 0

Explanation:
0[ds]We, therefore, do not think that even he deserves death penalty. Accused No.2, Sunil has comparatively a lesser role. Admittedly, he has not assaulted Krishnan or Prabhu, to begin with. Who has assaulted Prabhu and Abhayraj is still not clear, as it could also be that in the assaults the leading role could have been taken by the unknown accused. In that view, he also does not deserve the death sentence. The question is then how are these accused persons to be dealt with. Ordinarily, they would be liable to be awarded the life imprisonment45. However, in the peculiar circumstances of this case, mere life imprisonment which is capable of resulting into 20 years of imprisonment or 14 years of actual imprisonment may not be adequate punishment for these accused persons.