After Shashi Tharoor and Digvijaya Singh, BJP's Varun Gandhi opposes death penalty

Recently, MP and the BJP leader Shatrughan Sinha was criticised by Arun Jaitely for his signature on the mercy plea filed by Yakub Memon. Writing for Outlook, Varun has written an opinion peace titled 'The Noose Casts A Shameful Shadow' where he advocates the abolishment of capital punishment.

In his article, he cites several historical references such as Babylon civilisation, Jesus Christ and the Crusades and the British rule, and calls the death sentence not just brutal but 'anachronistic'. Despite the presence of investigation agencies and a proper legal proceeding, Varun Gandhi doesn't believe that judgements can be accurate. He mentions a study by Columbia University of 5,760 cases (between 1973-­1995) that reveals an error rate of 70 per cent in capital punishment verdicts. 

Varun goes on to say that 75 per cent of the convicts on death row belong to socially and economically-marginalised classes; 94 per cent of death row convicts are Dalits or from the minorities. "The poor consistently get the short end of the legal stick. The death penalty is a consequence of poor legal representation and institutional bias", he writes.

A couple of days ago, Shashi Tharoor of the Congress Party had posted a series of tweets that debated against the capital punishment. In his article Varun seems to carry the same pitch, "A death penalty at the end of a long and tedious process is no deterrent."

He believes that long prison terms (with no parole till a minimum stretch is served) can deter crime better and quicker trials can add to effectiveness. In his article he presented facts and figures from across the world, and quoted Buddhism philosophy, Italian jurist Cesare Beccaria and George Bernard Shaw among many to make a point that the capital punishment is not much of justice than retribution.

Varun Gandhi's article appeals to  the government to abolish capital punishment and look for better alternatives. Varun concludes by writing, "India, as one of the 58-odd countries where death penalty is retained, needs to recognise the changing global scenario. The death penalty is not just a remedy available at the disposal of the law, but a human rights issue, beyond the pale of law. For the largest democracy, the death penalty is an anomaly. It needs correction. Many that live do deserve death. And some that die deserve life. One must not be too eager to deal out death in judgement."

A little over 22 years after 12 coordinated blasts rocked Mumbai, killing 257 people and injuring over 700, the lone convict on death row in the case - Yakub Memon, was on Thursday executed about two hours after his lawyer's last-gasp plea to get the death warrant. The plea was signed by many veteran lawyers, politicians and other known personalities.

A day earler, Senior Congress MP Shashi Tharoor and Digvijaya Singh had sparked controversy by their remarks against capital punishment. In a series of tweets Tharoor had said that he was saddenned by the hanging of the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts convict Yakub. He said, "The state-sponsored killing diminishes us all by reducing us to murderers too." Tharoor also added, "There is no evidence that death penalty serves as a deterrent: to the contrary in fact. All it does is exact retribution: unworthy of a government."

Whereas, Digvijaya Singh sparked controversy tweeting, "exemplary urgency and commitment has been shown by govt and judiciary in punishing an accused of terror. I hope similar commitment of govt and judiciary would be shown in all cases of terror irrespective of their caste, creed and religion."