The Supreme Court said that life imprisonment should...

The Supreme Court said that life imprisonment should be the normal rule of punishment in murder cases. "Every murder is a heinous crime. But death penalty is not to be awarded in every case of murder," said the court.
A bench comprising Justice Doraiswamy Raju and Justice Brijesh Kumar said an accused could be sent to the gallows only if he fits in the category of the 'rarest of the rare cases', as held by the apex court in earlier cases.
The judges said several factors are to be taken into account before handing down the capital punishment to an accused. The motive of the crime, the manner of the assault, the impact of the crime on society are the factors, which must be examined first.
Besides, the circumstances and the facts of each case are equally important for the court to determine the degree of punishment.
The observations came on an appeal against the Gujarat High Court order upholding the death sentence given to an accused. The trial court had sentenced him to death for beating his two sons to death. Commuting the death penalty to life imprisonment, the apex court said the case did not fall in the category of the "rarest of the rare" cases.
It said there was no doubt that the offence was "heinous and unpardonable", but it was not committed for the lust of power or in pursuance of any anti-social activity. "Chances of repetition of such criminal acts at his hands, making the society further vulnerable are also not apparent," the court added.