The Supreme Court has decided to consider a death row convict’s plea seeking review petitions filed against death sentence orders to be heard in open court. Under the current practice adopted in apex court, review petitions are decided by judges in chambers without an opportunity given to the death row prisoner or his lawyer to present the case.
The order was passed on a petition by one Sundarrajan who filed a petition demanding his review petition, currently pending with the apex court, to be heard in open court. The apex court had on February 5 this year confirmed death sentence on him for kidnapping and strangulating to death a seven-year old boy in Tamil Nadu in 2009. The accused had murdered the child following the ransom amount of `5 lakh being not met.
Realising that the petition raised questions regarding Constitutional rights and liberties and involved amendment to the Supreme Court Rules, the bench of Justices P Sathasivam and JS Khehar issued notice to the Centre and Supreme Court Registry seeking their individual responses.
Sundarrajan quoted the recommendation of the law Commission which said that all death penalty matters should be heard by a bench of five judges or t least three judges where the criminal appeal involved capital punishment.