Archive · 18 Aug 2026
Supreme Court bins plea to replace death by hanging
In some places, very serious crimes are punished with the death penalty, which means the person's life is taken away.
In India, this punishment is carried out by hanging.
A lawyer named Rishi Malhotra asked the Supreme Court to say that hanging is not fair and should not be used.
He wanted the court to change the way executions happen.
The Supreme Court judges thought about his request.
They said no, because an old court decision from 1983 already said hanging is allowed in India.
The judges did not want to change that old decision right now.
However, they said the question could be looked at again in the future if needed.
So for now, hanging is still the way the death penalty is carried out in India.
The Supreme Court dismissed a petition challenging the constitutional validity of hanging as a method of carrying out the death penalty.
The court refused to refer the 1983 three-judge bench decision in Deena vs Union of India, which upheld execution by hanging, to a larger bench.
A bench of Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta said no case had been made out for reconsidering the constitutional validity of the provisions dealing with death penalty by hanging.
The petition, filed by senior advocate Rishi Malhotra, challenged Section 354 of the CrPC and Section 393(5) of the BNSS.
The court left the question open for future scrutiny if the need arises.
- Who
- The Supreme Court of India, comprising a bench of Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta; the petition was filed by senior advocate Rishi Malhotra.
- What
- Dismissed a petition challenging the constitutional validity of execution by hanging and refused to refer the 1983 decision in Deena vs Union of India to a larger bench.
- When
- Tuesday (specific date not stated in the article).
- Where
- The Supreme Court of India.
- Why
- Because the court was not persuaded that a case had been made out for referring the 1983 decision to a larger bench for reconsideration.
Petitioner's Position
Court's Position
Method of execution
Petitioner's Position
Hanging is constitutionally invalid as a method of execution and should be replaced, with lethal injection as the proposed alternative.
Court's Position
No case was made out for reconsideration; the 1983 decision upholding the constitutionality of execution by hanging stands, though the question remains open for future scrutiny.
- Court
- Supreme Court of India
- Bench
- Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta
- Petitioner
- Senior advocate Rishi Malhotra
- Challenged provisions
- Section 354 of the CrPC / Section 393(5) of the BNSS
- Key precedent
- Deena vs Union of India (1983, three-judge bench)
- Outcome
- Petition dismissed; question left open for future scrutiny