One of the chief justifications of government is that it should preserve law and order, protect the innocent, and punish criminals. Judgments must be made with great care, in order not to mistakenly punish innocent people. The judge should not be partial, but should treat everyone with an equal eye. Many texts enjoin the authorities to be compassionate and prescribe lenient punishments for minor infractions. Punishment should not be prescribed from a vengeful motivation, but always with the prisoner's welfare as well as the welfare of society in mind.
Punishment serves as a deterrent to crime and a shield for the innocent.
In theistic traditions, the government in meting out punishments is a co-worker with God, who is the final dispenser of justice. Furthermore, since by committing crimes the criminal burdens himself with demerit, which, if not purged by punishment in this life, burdens him in a future life, punishment helps him by reducing the quantity of evil karma which he will have to expiate in the future. Thus a government that vigorously prosecutes and punishes criminals upholds righteousness both in the present, by distinguishing good from evil in the eyes of the people, and in the future, by reducing the quantity of evil karma to be inherited by later generations. Finally, an important purpose of punishment is rehabilitation. To be effective as a force for rehabilitation and renovation, punishment should elicit sincere repentance.