Extra-Judicial Killings in India: A Constitutional and Institutional Crisis

ABSTRACT

The problem of extrajudicial killings, which is premised on the principle of premeditated murder, poses a critical threat to the survival of the constitution of India. Practice like police encounters, custodial deaths, mob lynchings, and honor killings, Violates articles 14, 21, and 22, whereby the suspect is denied an opportunity to speak in his own defense. The demand for instant justice through police encounters is due to the erosion of confidence in the criminal justice process. The directives issued by the Supreme Court in the case of PUCL v. State of Maharashtra (2006), “based on NHRC guidelines (1997, updated 2010), provide for implementation of the 16-point guidelines for independent investigation, magisterial inquiry, and implementation of the requirement of accountability to check the culture of impunity. Failure to do so, police excesses, absence of political will for reforms, and lack of effective oversight by judicial authorities, NHRC, and the police departments have given rise to a culture of unrestrained power that is in contrast to the very notion of natural justice and respect for human dignity in a democratic state. The present essay tries to provide an analytical study of the law pertaining to extrajudicial killings, where the study shall comprise doctrinal, qualitative, and comparative researches on case laws in relation to extrajudicial killings. The analysis here would be focused on the problem of constitutional mandate, legislation for protecting citizens’ rights, and finally, institutional failure.