Judicial Killings: An Analysis
- IJLLR Journal
- Apr 28, 2023
- 2 min read
Muskan Goel, Jindal Global Law School
ABSTRACT
Extrajudicial killing refers to the act of a police officer exceeding the authority given to them and taking a life without legal sanction. This violates Article 14 and 21 of the Indian Constitution, which protect the right to life and personal liberty, respectively. While the police are given the power to use force, they are not allowed to cause the death of someone who is not accused of an offense punishable by death or life imprisonment. Extrajudicial killings weaken the rule of law in India and are often attributed to corruption in the judicial system and inadequate policing.
The Indian Penal Code and the Criminal Procedure Code have provisions related to extrajudicial killings. Section 96 of the IPC allows for the right of private defence, but this defence is not available for inflicting more harm than necessary for defence. Section 100 of the IPC provides instances where a person who kills in self-defence will be justified, but it makes an exception for police officers. Section 46(3) of the CrPC allows police officers to use any means necessary to apprehend an accused if the accused violently resists or evades arrest. However, these laws do not allow for extrajudicial killings.
Extrajudicial killings occur when police officers bypass the legal procedure to grab "instant justice." Reasons for extrajudicial killings include the support of the public, political parties, and the reward system. The guidelines for extrajudicial killings were established in the PUCL v. State of Maharashtra case in 2014, which questioned the legality of over 90 police encounter killings in Mumbai between 1995 and 1997. These guidelines include issuing an FIR, informing CID or any other police department, informing the judicial magistrate, providing medical aid to the victim's relatives and any injured parties, surrendering weapons till the investigation is over, and holding a trial. No awards can be granted to the police officers until the investigation is complete.
