Section 303 I P C provides the punishment for the offence of “ murder by
life convict” with mandatory death sentence .
A constitutional bench of five
judges of Supreme Court viz. Chandrachud, Y.V. (Cj), Fazalali, Syed Murtaza,
Tulzapurkar, V.D., Reddy, O. Chinnappa (J), Varadarajan, A. (J) in case of Mithu vs State Of Punjab Etc. 1983 AIR 473 observed :-
“it is impossible to uphold Sec. 303 as valid. Sec. 303 excludes judicial
discretion. The scales of justice are removed from the hands of the Judge so
soon as he pronounces the accused guilty of the offence. So final, so
irrevocable and so irrestitutable is the sentence of death that no law which
provides for it without involvement of the judicial mind can be said to be
fair, just and reasonable. Such a law must necessarily be stigmatised as
arbitrary and oppressive. Sec. 303 is such a law and it must go the way of all
bad laws. I agree with my Lord Chief Justice that Sec. 303,Indian Penal Code must be struck
down as unconstitutional."
So section 303 IPC remains in the statute book
but not applicable, the cases of 303 I.P.C. will be covered in section 302 IPC.
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