The President may only say 'YES' or 'NO'. Not 'CAN'T SAY' or 'DON'T KNOW'.

Dear Friends
It is somewhat expected that KASAB will be sentenced to Death by Hanging. Thereafter, the High Court of Bombay will hear his appeal on a mandatory REFERENCE. Thereafter, the Supreme Court is bound to hear him on an appeal whether preferred by him or by the State.

So, what about the President's current backlog of clemency petitions?

The President or the Governor, as the case may be, are not to disrupt the judicial power of the Government. When a Court of Law imposes a death penalty upon a convict, it becomes the duty of the Executive Government to execute such punishment except upon the intervention of the President or the Governor, upon a properly instituted clemency petition.

For the past two decades, what we are seeing in India is that the decision making by the President is wholly botched up by indecisiveness and political considerations. The President is required to answer, either 'YES' or 'NO'. Our Founding Fathers were not foolish enough to entrust to the President of India, a power to indefinitely hold up judicial orders by receiving clemency petitions first and by refusing thereafter to say, either 'YES' or 'NO'.

Over the past two decades, successive Presidents have instead been content to say 'CAN'T SAY' or 'DON'T KNOW', after they receive clemency petitions. What kind of Governance is this? This is utter mockery of our Constitutional jurisprudence.

Are the people of India opposed to the death penalty? Then, nothing is more simpler for the Parliament of India than to merely create a law, by a simple majority, to abolish all forms of 'death' penalty. Problem solved!

Is the President of India opposed to death penalty? Simple, indeed. Accept the clemency petition and grant 'pardon'.

But what on earth is it, to sleep over files like it is being done?

It is not like India alone is populated with people and the rest of the world is populated with monkeys. If 'death penalty' is abhorrent to many here, simply 'abolish' it. If not, keep it on the books. The President can still grant 'clemency' to whoever he/she pleases.

I think, the President's indecisiveness is making a mockery of our criminal justice system. And it may take KASAB to clean up this rot in the President's decision making. Is it too much to say 'YES' or 'NO'? Then, do not become the President of India - there are too many alternative avenues or job opportunities open in India. And the President of India should be the last person in the country to engage in political procrastination.

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Regards,

K.V. Dhananjay.
Advocate, Supreme Court of India
+91-99029-09390