The Supreme Court, in another ruling on honour killings, took a tough stance, saying the prosecution should seek the death penalty for those indulging in such “barbaric and feudal” practices in a country governed by the rule of law.
The court said the “rarest of rare case” test it devised for award of the death penalty in heinous murder cases should apply to honour killings too — to be a deterrent to “uncivilised behaviour” by people with a feudal mindset who don’t hesitate to kill even their own children in the name of so-called “honour”. “In our opinion, honour killings, for whatever reasons, come within the category of ‘rarest of rare cases’ deserving the death sentence. It’s time to stamp out these barbaric, feudal practices which are a slur on our nation,” a bench of Justices Markandey Katju and Gyan Sudha Misra said, upholding the conviction and life sentence for Bhagwan Das, who killed his daughter for defying an arranged marriage.
“This is necessary as a deterrent for such outrageous, uncivilised behaviour. All persons who are planning to perpetrate ‘honour killings’ should know the gallows await them,” said the bench, which two weeks back directed states to take tough action in all such cases.