Retributive Mind And Soulful Law: Balancing Justice And Humanity
- IJLLR Journal
- 1 day ago
- 1 min read
Guruprasad C V, Saraswathi Law College
ABSTRACT:
Current criminal jurisprudence exists in a state of experiencing tension between the social instinct for punitive retribution and the constitutional thought of human dignified life. This research paper examines the conceptual, philosophical, and legal dilemmas and play between the "retributive mind” that is the demand that moral wrongdoing incur a proportional debt of suffering and "soulful law" which means the integration of constitutional empathy, restorative repair, and reformative mercy into the state governed by law. Solidifying philosophical foundations from Kantian retributivism to modern restorative justice theory, this paper emphasizes on the Indian legal architecture through constitutional mandates (Articles 14 and 21) and seminal Supreme Court jurisprudence. It observes how Indian courts are actively trying to balance deterrence, desert, and mitigation, particularly within capital punishment frameworks. Moreover, the paper explores victim-centric justice, statutory developments, and international models of restorative justice, warning against dangers of populist hyper-retributivism and unprincipled leniency. Ultimately, this study proposes a concrete sentencing model which is grounded in the principle that criminal justice must be retributive in marking the wrongdoing, proportional in punishing harm, restorative in addressing victim injury, and reformative in respecting human agency and society.
