Is Capital Punishment Answer For Rape

IS CAPITAL PUNISHMENT AN ANSWER TO RAPE?
In the case of Bachan Singh vs. State of Punjab, the Honourable Supreme Court of India had
stated that, Death penalty or Capital Punishment can be given in ‘rarest of rare’ cases, such as
rape, with respect to the severity of the crime. The idea of punishing rapists by the way of
capital punishment, comes from the patriarchal notion and ancient rape laws that ‘rape is
worse than death’. The belief is that when a woman is raped, she is ‘destroyed’, and loses
‘honour’ seizing to live a dignified life in the society. Thus, a crime that ‘takes away her life’
(destroys her honour) should be punished with a Death Penalty. It functions as a form of
Retributive Justice, thus consoling the victim and her/his families. Capital punishments
reduce the number of repetitive offenders in the society. It is commonly alleged that Capital
Punishment can deter crime rates and protect the rape victims and their dignity. Today, there
are over 31 countries on this globe, that impose death penalty as a punishment for committing
the sexually violent offence—Rape. Lawmakers assert that stringent punishment creates a
‘chastening’ effect on individuals thereby reducing future possibilities of them committing a
crime.
The question here is- Does capital punishment really deter rapes? Does capital punishment
address the needs and rights of the rape victims/rape survivors? Do the rapists fear capital
punishment? None of the states instigating capital punishments have provided data showing
the efficacy and the deterrence effects of the death penalty for rape cases. Brutal rapes in
India have not decreased despite the enforcement of the Criminal law (Amendment) Act,
2013 which prescribes the death penalty and life imprisonment for sexual assaults that result
in the victim dead or being reduced to a persistent vegetative state.
Nearly 1 in 5 women (18.3%) and 1 in 71 men (1.4%) have been raped in their lifetime. More
than half (51.1%) of female victims of rape reported being raped by an intimate partner;
40.8% reported being raped by an acquaintance. Is it practical to think that all these cases
would be reported when it is known that if accused is found guilty, he/she will be convicted
with a death penalty? When the intensity of the punishment increases, the intensity of threat
posed to the victim also increases. It also includes threat to the victim’s life and limb. It not
only directly affects a woman’s ability to report the crime to the police and file a court case,
but it also relies on an underpinning idea of women’s obedience that is often in conflict with
the possibility of combatting domestic violence, including marital rape.
"Nothing is known about how potential criminal offenders actually perceive their risk of
punishment”, says Criminologist Daniel Nagin. In a study (approved by the institutional
ethical committee of the Department of Psychology, School of Social & Behavioural
Sciences, Central University of Karnataka) participants stated that, “Indian judiciary has
enough loopholes for a culprit to get him secured from any sort of accusations, no matter
what. The Indian judiciary system takes more time for giving punishment … the chance of
escaping from crime is high. This motivates them to do the crime”. Before committing a rape,
a rapist mostly thinks of the chance of getting caught than the severity of the punishment.
They believe that if they are not caught, how are they even going to be punished.
The certainty of being caught is a vastly more powerful deterrent than the punishment. Thus,
it is necessary to increase the probabilities of being convicted than increasing the severity of
the punishment.
Rape survivors value a judicial system in which their access to justice is faster. However, in
cases for which the punishment is a death sentence, the proceedings might consume a lot of
time causing a delay in the justice delivery. The rape survivors demand sensibility, respect
and dignity in the society, rather than a capital punishment. In some cultures, the
victims/victim’s family have rights to spare the criminal wrongdoer’s life. Considering this,
the sentence can be influenced and the victim’s perspective becomes relevant.
Women and Child activist organisations are of the view that capital punishment for rape does
not deter rape, nor does it protect the rights of the victim. To address and to reduce these
crime rates, we must address the root cause, the mentality of rapists who commit such
offensive/violent acts. Rape is a manifestation of patriarchy and its beliefs of establishing
control and dominance over women. In the historical context rape was used as a medium by
military men to demean a social group and break the social cohesion. People believe that
women who do not stick to conventional rules and norms of a society are raped. This is so
much instilled in people’s minds that, even violence at home is not spoken against most of the
times. More than 40% women and 38% men told a recent government survey that it was okay
for a man to beat his wife, if she disrespected her in-laws, neglected her home or children,
went out without telling him, refused sex or didn't cook properly.
Capital Punishment is not a cure to Rape. We need a change in the belief system of our
society, by the way of educational reforms, awareness on laws, teaching sympathy and
empathy towards victims, learning to control sexual urges and dismissing the idea of any
gender being superior and thus its need to establish control over the other.
CITATIONS:
1. DEATH PENALTY AND THE VICTIMS, 2016, United Nations

2. Why is the Death Penalty not the answer to Rape? By Morine Chauvris,
https://worldcoalition.org/2024/07/08/why-is-the-death-penalty-not-the-answer-to-
rape/
3. Domestic Violence Statistics, https://www.thehotline.org/stakeholders/domestic-
violence-statistics/
4. Rising Crimes against Indian Women , BBC, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-
india-62830634
5. Discuss whether Death penalty is a solution towards ending violence against women
or not, Former IAS, https://forumias.com/blog/answered-discuss-whether-death-
penalty-is-a-solution-towards-ending-violence-against-women-or-not/
6. CMI Report | 2016 Women’s Activism in Saudi Arabia: Male Guardianship and
Sexual Violence, https://www.cmi.no/publications/5696-womens-activism-in-saudi-
arabia
7. J K, R., M Pillai, P., Rajeevi, P., C R, S., Rajkumar, E., Joshua George, A., &
Greeshma, R. (2022). Socio-cultural and psychological aspects of rape: Perspectives
of young men from Kerala. Cogent Social Sciences, 8(1).
https://doi.org/10.1080/23311886.2022.2064589
8. National Institute of Justice, "Five Things About Deterrence," June 5, 2016,
nij.ojp.gov:
https://nij.ojp.gov/topics/articles/five-things-about-deterrence
9. https://youtu.be/8WJ69m0PZKw - Why India has a Rape Problem , By Mohak
Mangal
10. Rape: A Tool Of Power, Control and Patriarchy,
https://kashmirreader.com/2024/09/03/rape-a-tool-of-power-control-and-
patriarchy/

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IS CAPITAL PUNISHMENT AN ANSWER TO RAPE?

1. DEATH PENALTY AND THE VICTIMS, 2016, United Nations

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