India
2026
- GOVERNMENT
- federal parliamentary republic
- CONSTITUTION
- January 26, 1950; amended several times
- LEGAL SYSTEM
- based on English common law; partial review of legislative acts by the judiciary
- LEGISLATIVE SYSTEM
- bicameral, Council of States (Rajya Sabha) and People's Assembly (Lok Sabha)
- JUDICIAL SYSTEM
- Supreme Court, judges appointed by the President and serve until 65 years of age
RELIGIONS
80% Hindu; 11% Muslims; 2% Christians; 2% Sikhs; Buddhist minorities and others
From the country
- JULY 23, 2026IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: MAN SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR SEXUAL ASSAULT, MURDER OF 7-YEAR-OLD BOY IN UP
- JULY 21, 2026IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: SUPREME COURT SETS ASIDE DEATH PENALTY IN 1996 SAMLETI BUS BLAST CASE, ORDERS FRESH TRIAL
JULY 7, 2026IndiaDEATH PENALTYINDIA: GUJARAT HIGH COURT UPHOLDS DEATH SENTENCE FOR 38 ACCUSED AND LIFE TERM FOR 11 PERSONS IN 2008 AHMEDABAD SERIAL BLAST CASE
APRIL 16, 2026IndiaDEATH PENALTYINDIA: SUPREME COURT STAYS THREE DEATH SENTENCES, ORDERS FULL MITIGATION INQUIRY
A three-judge bench of the Indian Supreme Court on 13 April 2026, stayed a death sentence awarded to three convicts in a case from Dakshina Kannada.
APRIL 7, 2026IndiaDEATH PENALTYINDIA: DEATH PENALTY FOR NINE POLICE OFFICERS WHO TORTURED TWO CHRISTIAN DALITS TO DEATH
In the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, nine police officers were sentenced to death on April 6, 2026 for the in-custody deaths of P. Jeyaraj and his son J. Benniks, two Dalit Christians.
MARCH 25, 2026IndiaDEATH PENALTYINDIA: HC COMMUTES DEATH PENALTY IN LUDHIANA RAPE-MURDER CASE
The Punjab and Haryana High Court commuted the death sentence of a 28-year-old man convicted of raping and murdering a 4-year-7-month-old child in Ludhiana, the Tribune reported on March 20, 2026.
FEBRUARY 23, 2026IndiaDEATH PENALTYINDIA: UP COUPLE GETS DEATH FOR SEXUALLY ASSAULTING 33 CHILDREN
A couple was sentenced to death on February 20, 2026 by a court in Uttar Pradesh after being convicted in a case of sexual assault of 33 children, some of them as young as three years old.
- FEBRUARY 16, 2026IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: 3 SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR GANG RAPE OF ISRAELI TOURIST, MURDER NEAR HAMPI
A sessions court in Karnataka's Koppal district on February 16, 2026 sentenced three men to death after convicting them in the gang rape of two women, including an Israeli national, and the killing of a male tourist.
- FEBRUARY 9, 2026IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: NO DEATH SENTENCES CONFIRMED BY SUPREME COURT FOR THIRD CONSECUTIVE YEAR
The Supreme Court of India has not confirmed a single death penalty in the last three years, according to an annual statistics report on death penalties in India published on February 4, 2026 by The Square Circle Clinic
- JANUARY 27, 2026IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: PATNA HIGH COURT INVOKES 'MAHABHARAT' TO CONFIRM DEATH SENTENCE IN TRIPLE MURDER CASE
The Patna High Court recently upheld the conviction and death sentence awarded to two accused persons for the murder of three people in connection with a land dispute, Live Law reported on January 26, 2026.
JANUARY 19, 2026IndiaDEATH PENALTYINDIA: GUJARAT COURT DELIVERS DEATH PENALTY WITHIN 40 DAYS IN CHILD RAPE CASE
A Rajkot special court on January 17, 2026 delivered a rarest-of-rare judgment with unprecedented speed, sentencing 30-year-old Remsinh Dudwa to death for the sexual assault of a minor girl in Atkot’s Kanpar village.
- DECEMBER 22, 2025IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: DEATH SENTENCE OF MAN WHO BEHEADED BROTHER COMMUTED TO 20-YEAR JAIL TERM
Making it clear that not every brutal murder warrants capital punishment, the Punjab and Haryana High Court on December 22, 2025 commuted the death sentence of Ashok Kumar