top of page

By:

Correspondent

23 August 2024 at 4:29:04 pm

Swift Justice

The rape and murder of a three-and-a-half-year-old girl in Maharashtra’s Nasrapur village was one of those crimes that momentarily dissolves the distinction between legal outrage and moral revulsion. Such acts seem to defy language as much as law. The Pune Special POCSO Court deserves commendation for demonstrating that justice need not be paralysed by delay. Its decision to sentence the convicted perpetrator, Bhimrao Kamble, to death within two months of the crime was notable not merely...

Swift Justice

The rape and murder of a three-and-a-half-year-old girl in Maharashtra’s Nasrapur village was one of those crimes that momentarily dissolves the distinction between legal outrage and moral revulsion. Such acts seem to defy language as much as law. The Pune Special POCSO Court deserves commendation for demonstrating that justice need not be paralysed by delay. Its decision to sentence the convicted perpetrator, Bhimrao Kamble, to death within two months of the crime was notable not merely for the punishment imposed, but for the court’s insistence on an unbroken chain of forensic and circumstantial evidence, scrupulous adherence to due process, and a reasoned application of the “rarest of rare” doctrine. The Nasrapur case demonstrates that the criminal justice system can function with remarkable efficiency when its various arms work in concert. The court proceeded without avoidable delay while ensuring due process. Conviction came within sixty days of the crime, followed swiftly by sentencing. Such timelines should be exceptional only because every criminal trial ought to aspire to them. This matters because deterrence rarely flows from the theoretical existence of the death penalty. Criminological research across jurisdictions has struggled to establish that capital punishment, by itself, prevents violent crime. A justice system that delivers certainty is a greater deterrent than one that merely promises severity. Long delays, hostile witnesses, poor investigations and collapsing prosecutions weaken public confidence far more than the absence of harsher laws. India scarcely suffers from a shortage of stringent laws. Successive amendments to criminal legislation and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act have steadily increased penalties over the past decade. The larger deficit has been institutional capacity, be it competent investigation, scientific evidence gathering, witness protection and efficient adjudication. The verdict serves as a reminder that justice ultimately depends on institutions that function, not merely on laws that promise severity. The debate over the morality or efficacy of capital punishment is unlikely to disappear. But whatever one’s position on the death sentence, few could dispute the importance of a judgment rooted in painstaking evidence rather than emotional clamour. The Nasrapur case exposed the uncomfortable truth that the convicted man had acted with a sense of impunity, emboldened by his criminal history. This points to a recurring institutional failure. Dangerous repeat offenders cannot be allowed to slip repeatedly through administrative cracks. Effective policing is not merely about solving crimes after they occur; it is equally about identifying habitual offenders, monitoring them appropriately and preventing opportunities for further violence. The true precedent of Nasrapur should be that every victim, irrespective of public attention or political pressure, receives an investigation anchored in science, a prosecution built on evidence and a trial conducted without needless delay. Justice earns public confidence not because it is swift or severe in isolation, but because it is both scrupulous and certain.

Navy doc treat injured Pakistani crew

Mumbai: In a humanitarian gesture, the Indian Navy (IN) rendered lifesaving medical assistance to save the life of a Pakistani crewman on an Iranian fishing vessel in the Arabian Sea, officials said.


The operation took place on Friday/Saturday around 350 nautical miles in the high seas off Oman coast, with the help of the stealth frigate INS Trikand.


On April 4, the INS Trikand monitored a distress call from the Omani vessel 'Al Omeedi' seeking help for a crew member, who was seriously injured with multiple fractures and blood loss.


Further enquiry revealed that the distressed crewman was working on the vessel's engine when he sustained the grievous injuries and was transferred to another Iran-bound dhow, 'FV Abdul Rehman Hanzia', in the vicinity.

On getting the SOS, INS Trikand immediately altered her course to rush medical assistance to the injured crew.


The 'FV Abdul Rehman Hanzia' has a contingent of 11 Pakistanis and 5 Iranians manning the vessel.


The Indian warship's medical officer along with a team of Marine Commandos boarded the FV.


Ob board, the MO started the three hour long medical procedures, controlling the blood flow, suturing and splinting of the crew's injured fingers.

It was a timely response which prevented the patient's total loss of the injured fingers due to gangrene.


The IN stealth warship also provided crucial medical supplies, antibiotics to the FV to ensure the injured crew's wellbeing till the dhow reaches Iran.


The entire crew of the dhow expressed their gratitude to the IN for rendering assistance on time that helped saving their injured mate's life, said the IN officials.

Comments

bottom of page