India
Death penalty and prisoners' rights · Archive since 1999
Data card
- Legal status
- Retentionist
- Executions recorded in 2026
- 0
- Executions recorded in 2025
- 0
- First news item in the archive
- JANUARY 1, 1999 · The Indian legislative system also provides for different...
- News items in the archive
- 1,862
Source: Hands Off Cain database, updated to 2026.
India is classified as Retentionist in the Hands Off Cain database, updated to 2026. In 2026 the association recorded 0 executions in the country, against 0 the year before. The archive holds 1,862 news items on India, from 1999 to today.
In India the death penalty applies to murder, terrorism and certain serious sexual offences, and the method is hanging. Case law restricts it to the cases it calls the rarest of the rare: many sentences are handed down, few executions are actually carried out, and a significant share of sentences is overturned or commuted on appeal.
The archive follows sentences, commutations, executions and legislative debates.
Latest news
MAY 31, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTYINDIA: SEARCH FOR HANGMAN DELAYS EXECUTIONS
India's first executions in seven years are likely be delayed because authorities are unable to find
MAY 31, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTYUAE: BLOOD MONEY PAID, 3 PUNJABI YOUTHS RETURN HOME FROM DUBAI
after being released from death row in Sharjah central jail in the United Arab Emirates
- MAY 29, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: HC SETS ASIDE DEATH PENALTY, ACQUITS MAN
domestic help Sandeep Maingade, 31, was acquitted by a division bench of justice BH Marlapalle and justice Abhay Thipsay of the Bombay high court in India.
- MAY 28, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: AMNESTY SLAMS GOVT DECISION TO EXECUTE TWO PRISONERS
Amnesty International slammed the Indian President Pratibha Patil's decision to allow the execution of Devinder Pal Singh Bhullar and Mahendra Nath Das.
- MAY 27, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: PRESIDENT GIVES GO-AHEAD FOR HANGING OF BHULLAR, DAS
After seven years, the go-ahead has been given in India for execution of two murder convicts
- MAY 25, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
MERCY PETITION FOR INDIA'S 'HOUSE OF HORROR' KILLINGS
Surender Koli lodged a petition for mercy over his death sentence for the Nithari serial killings in India.
- MAY 23, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: GODHRA CONVICTS CHALLENGE COURT ORDER
the 11 convicts sentenced to death in the Godhra carnage case approached the Gujarat high court in India challenging the special court's order.
- MAY 21, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: DEATH SENTENCE IN MURDER CASE
in India, Palakkad Additional Sessions Judge P.K. Haneefa sentenced Kanakaraj to death for murdering and robbing Sheela Jayakrishnan on March 23, 2010...
- MAY 21, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
MALAYSIA: GRANNY FROM INDIA GETS DEATH
62-year-old Indian national Fazila Bee Abdul Kareem, from Chennai...
- MAY 19, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
YOUTHS ON DEATH ROW: BLOOD MONEY PRODUCED IN COURT
the 46 lakh blood money to be paid to the family of the deceased Pakistan national by 17 Indian youths on death row in the United Arab Emirates and their families...
- MAY 13, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: SC 'ORDERS' GALLOWS FOR COPS IN FAKE ENCOUNTERS
a bench of the Indian Supreme Court comprising Justice Markandey Katju and Justice Gyan Sudha Misra said that police who kill people in the name of a fake 'encounter' fell within the category of "the rarest of rare'' cases.
- MAY 12, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: BELGAUM'S DEATH ROW JAIL OVERFLOWS
the Hindalga central jail of Belgaum, India, is facing an acute shortage of barracks. As it's the only jail housing death row inmates, their number has been steadily rising over the years.
- MAY 12, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: DELHI HIGH COURT AWARDS DEATH FOR 3 FOR HONOUR KILLING
in New Delhi, India, Additional sessions judge DK Sharma sentenced Surender Singh, his brother Narender, and their mother Lakhpati Devi to death.
- MAY 10, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: ELEVEN PRISONERS ON DEATH ROW IN DASNA JAIL
with a special court ordering the execution of Surender Koli in the sensational Nithari serial killings case in India, the number of prisoners on death row in the Dasna district jail has reached 11, Jail Superintendent Vireshwar Raj Sharma said.
MAY 10, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTYINDIA: SUPREME COURT RECOMMENDS DEATH PENALTY FOR ‘HONOUR KILLINGS’
India's Supreme Court has recommended the death penalty for those convicted of
- MAY 4, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: DEATH SENTENCE FOR TWO MILITANTS
in Jammu, India, Kathua Principal sessions judge Jang Bhadur Singh Jamwal...
- MAY 3, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: NITHARI CASE: COURT ANNOUNCES EXECUTION DAY FOR KOLI, MERCY PLEA FILED
a special court ordered Surender Koli, 39, who was sentenced to death in the sensational Nithari serial killings case, be hanged between May 24 and May 31. Koli then filed a mercy petition before the President.
- APRIL 30, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: FOUR AWARDED CAPITAL PUNISHMENT
in Ghazipur, India, Additional District and Sessions Judge A R Yadav sentenced Shivpujan, Mahendra...
- APRIL 26, 2011IndonesiaDEATH PENALTY
MALAYSIA: TWO INDIANS GET DEATH SENTENCE IN MALAYSIA FOR DRUG TRAFFICKING
two Indian nationals were sentenced to death in Malaysia. Judge Siti Mariah Ahmad of the Kuala Lumpur High Court found Samad Mohamad Sulthan, 44, guilty of trafficking 3.9 kg of ketamine at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport on February 25, 2009.
- APRIL 25, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: SC UPHOLDS DEATH SENTENCE OF MAN FOR RAPING, KILLING CHILD
a bench comprising Justices Harjit Singh Bedi and Chandramouli Kumar Prasad of the Indian Supreme Court upheld the death sentence awarded to Mohammed Mannan, alias Abdul Mannan, 43, a mason, for raping and killing an eight-year-old child on September 28,
- APRIL 25, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: LOCAL COURT AWARDS CAPITAL PUNISHMENT TO MAN FOR KILLING FOUR
in India, Shahjahanpur District Judge Narendra Kumar Kanaujia sentenced Raju Yadav to death.
- APRIL 8, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: COP’S DEATH SENTENCE COMMUTED IN MURDER CASE
in India, Justice Mittal of the Punjab and Haryana High Court...
- APRIL 8, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: GALLOWS FOR 5 DANDUPALYA MEMBERS
in Bangalore, India, five members of the Dandupalya gang were sentenced to death for various murders and robberies in different parts of the State.
APRIL 7, 2011United StatesDEATH PENALTYINDIA: FIRM TO STOP SELLING EXECUTION DRUG TO US PRISONS
An Indian drug company that supplied a key execution drug to U.S. prisons has decided to halt future sales following objections from death-penalty opponents.
- APRIL 6, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: GODHRA DEATH CONFIRMATION
due to the volume of documents and technical difficulties, Division Bench of Justices Tripathi and Bhatt of the Gujarat High Court in India gave the Panchmahals Principal District Judge two months to prepare paper-books for the confirmation of death sente
- APRIL 3, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
President Pratibha Patil pardoned two murder convicts from Maharashtra...
President Pratibha Patil pardoned two murder convicts from Maharashtra...
- APRIL 3, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: PRESIDENT PARDONS TWO DEATH CONVICTS
Indian President Pratibha Patil pardoned two murder convicts from Maharashtra and Madhya
- MARCH 30, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: 2 SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR VASHI BOY'S MURDER
extra joint adhoc additional sessions judge DN Bhargande of the fast-track court in Thane, India, sentenced Nihal Sheikh, 30, and Rafiq Sayyed...
- MARCH 29, 2011IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: ‘DEATH FOR MILK ADULTERATORS IN MAHARASHTRA’
in India, Maharashtra dairy development minister Madhukar Chavan announced that the state government will demand the death penalty for the milk adulteration
- MARCH 27, 2011PakistanDEATH PENALTY
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES: SHARJAH COURT FREES 8 PUNJABI YOUTHS OF MURDER CHARGE
judges Abul Majd Al Sharqawi, Ehab and Aidroos of the Shariat court in Sharjah, the United Arab Emirates, put its seal on the blood money accepted by the father of a murdered Pakistani youth and freed 8 Indians from Punjab and 2 Pakistanis of all charges