Supreme Court Issues Guidelines to Streamline Death Penalty Execution and Mercy Petitions, Aiming to Prevent Delays
In State of Maharashtra and Ors. v. Pradeep Yashwant Kokade and Anr., the Supreme Court directed all states and union territories to establish dedicated cells within their Home or Prison Departments to handle mercy petitions from death row convicts promptly, as per the timelines set by the respective governments. The Court emphasized that these cells should be responsible for processing petitions without delay. It also directed Sessions Courts to issue notices immediately upon receiving death sentence confirmation, seeking information on pending appeals, review/curative petitions, or mercy pleas, and to monitor proceedings regularly to ensure timely issuance of execution warrants once all legal options are exhausted.
The Court set out detailed procedural guidelines for both the executive and judiciary to prevent delays in handling mercy petitions and death sentence executions. The State of Maharashtra's appeals, challenging a 2019 Bombay High Court judgment that commuted the death sentences of two convicts to life imprisonment, were dismissed.
Key directives include:
Dedicated Cells for Mercy Petitions: States must create specialized cells to process mercy petitions promptly. These cells must coordinate with police, investigation agencies, and judiciary officials.
Information Sharing: Prisons must forward necessary documents to the cell, including convict records and legal documents.
Coordination: Mercy petitions should be forwarded to the Governor’s or President’s Secretariat immediately.
Judicial Responsibilities: Sessions Courts must ensure timely action on death penalty cases and monitor any pending petitions or appeals. Execution warrants should only be issued after a 15-day gap, with convicts informed of their right to legal representation.
Compliance Reporting: States must report their compliance with these directives within three months, with periodic reviews.
The Supreme Court directed its Registry to send copies of the judgment to the Home Departments of all states, and the matter of compliance will be reviewed on March 17, 2025.