The Supreme Court (SC) Issued detailed procedural guidelines to be followed by the executive as well as the judiciary for handling mercy petitions and execution of death sentences so as to prevent delays in the process, in its judgement in State of Maharashtra and Others v Pradeep Yashwant Kokade and Another with Connected Case [ 2024 INSC 947].
The guidelines are as follows: –
Directions to State Governments and Union Territories
- Dedicated Cells for Mercy Petitions
- State Governments and Union Territories must establish dedicated cells within their Home or Prison Departments to handle mercy petitions. These cells should promptly process mercy petitions within the prescribed timeframe.
- An officer-in-charge of the dedicated cell shall be nominated by designation, and the contact details will be shared with all prisons.
- Attachment of Judiciary Officials
- An official from the Law and Judiciary or Justice Department will be attached to the dedicated cell.
- Information Sharing and Documentation
- Prison authorities must immediately forward mercy petitions to the dedicated cell and call for information from police stations and investigation agencies, including details about the convict’s antecedents, family, economic condition, incarceration period, and relevant legal documents.
- Jail authorities must promptly forward various documents, including police reports, FIRs, arrest and chargesheet details, committal orders, trial evidence, convict conduct reports, and judgments from the Sessions Court, High Court, and Supreme Court, along with English translations where required, to the officer-in-charge of the dedicated cell and the Secretary of the Home Department.
- Coordination with Governor and President’s Secretariats
- Mercy petitions must be forwarded to the Secretariats of the Governor or President immediately for further action.
- Electronic Communication
- As far as possible, all communication should be conducted via email to ensure efficiency, barring cases where confidentiality is required.
- Guidelines and Reporting
- State Governments are required to issue executive orders detailing procedures for handling mercy petitions. They must report compliance to the Supreme Court within three months
Guidelines for Sessions Courts
The SC outlined specific responsibilities for Sessions Courts once a death sentence is confirmed by the High Court:
- As soon as the order of the High Court confirming or imposing the death sentence is received by the Sessions Court, a note thereof must be taken, and the disposed of case shall be listed on the cause list. The proceedings can be numbered as Misc. Application depending upon the applicable Rules of the procedure.
- The Sessions Court shall immediately issue notice to the State Public Prosecutor or the investigating agency calling upon them to state whether any appeal or special leave petition has been preferred before this Court and what is the outcome of the said petition/appeal.
- If the State Public Prosecutor or the investigating agency reports that the appeal is pending, as soon as the order of this Court confirming or restoring the death sentence is received by the Sessions Court, again, the disposed of case or miscellaneous applications should be listed on the cause list and notice be issued to the State Public Prosecutor or the investigating agency to ascertain whether any review/curative petitions or mercy petitions are pending.
- Ensure that a clear 15-day gap exists between the issuance of an execution warrant and its implementation. Convicts must be informed of their right to legal representation, and legal aid should be provided upon request.
- Copies of the order issuing the warrant and the warrant shall be immediately provided to the convicts, and the Prison authorities must explain the implications thereof to the convicts. If the convict so desires, legal aid be immediately provided to the convicts by the Prison authorities for challenging the warrant.
- The State government must immediately apply for an Execution Warrant once the death penalty becomes final and enforceable.
