Ethical And Non-Ethical Aspects Of Plea Bargaining

Usha Kiran Swain, BBA LLB (H), SOA National Institute of Law, Bharatpur, Bhubaneswar, Odisha

ABSTRACT

It is very definite that courts are overburdened with criminal cases. The courts are striving hard to find out different methods for expeditious disposal of the cases. Plea bargaining is one of the methods adopted by the judiciary for speedy disposal of cases involving offences which are less serious and petty. Regardless of its convenient aspect, plea bargaining has been subject to several moral and ethical challenges. Despite of several debates and disagreements plea bargaining still stands firm as an operative mechanism in administering justice. This paper aims to understand the utility of plea bargaining as an effective machinery in the judicature, to scrutinize its morality and ethicality and to analyse whether it can be relied upon by the judiciary without contravention to the moral standards and norms of society. Lastly, I would be conveying my outlook towards this mechanism