Legality of extra judicial killing
The only two circumstances in which such killing would not constitute an offence were:
1. If death is caused in the exercise of the right of private defence and
2. Under section 46 of the CrPC which authorises the police to use force, extending upto the causing of death as maybe necessary to arrest the person accused of an offense punishable with death or imprisonment for life.
Armed forces special powers act (AFSPA) 1958:
Personnel could use excessive force to maintain law and order even to the point of causing death.
Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) 1967:
Allows for the exercise of indefinite powers against a member of terrorist group irrespective of his activity.
Army act, 1950:
It gives the army the liberty to decide an offence committed by the army personnel should be carried out by the criminal court or court martial for cases can be treated in both the courts.
Code of criminal procedure(CrPC) 1973:
Justifies the use of force to disperse an unlawful assembly and also the use of force to the point of causing death.
Some facts on extra judicial killing in India:
1. In response to an RTI filed by first post, the National Human Rights Comminssion revealed that it had recorded 1782 cases of fake encounters in India during the period of 2000-2017.
2. A PIL alleges 1528 extrajudicial killings between 1980 and 2011 in Manipur and the allegations were against the Indian army, Assam rifles, central paramilitary forces and Manipur police.
3. Four UN human rights experts have expressed alarm about allegations of atleast 59 extrajudicial killings by police in Uttar Pradesh since March 2017.
People’s union for civil liberty and another vs. State of Maharashtra and others
•Registration of FIR against the perpetrators
•CID and judicial probe
•Informing NHRC
•Medical aid to the victim
•No immediate rewards to the cops
Sections 96 to 106
General exceptions
Right of private defence/self defence
Indian Penal Code
•Right of private defence is the right to protect one’s own (or another’s) person or property a against the unlawful aggression of others. To protect himself, the person is even allowed to take law into his own hands.
•Right of private defence is founded on the following principles:
•When life is in danger, need not wait for the state aid.
• This right is preventive in nature.
•Not available to satisfy ones ego.
•Real and immediate threat.
•Reasonable apprehension.
•Right of private defence commences as soon as reasonable apprehension of danger to the body arises.
• The protective measures must be relative to the danger ahead.
• Retribution is not allowed.
•When the necessity ends, the right of private defence ends. The person exercising such right need not chase the fleeing attacker and then beat him.
•This right cannot be weighed in golden scale.