Gang Rape Criminals Get Freedom – Crime of Rape compromised Supreme Court of India agrees rapist can pay to victim for freedom

Gang Rape Criminals Get Freedom – Crime of Rape compromised
Supreme Court of India agrees rapist can pay to victim for freedom
Please remember Offence of Rape is not compoundable.

What is the meaning of compoundable offence or crime?
Compounding in simple terms understand it means compromise.
The compounding of the offence signifies that the person against whom the offence has
Been committed has received some gratification, to act as an inducement for his desiring to abstain from a prosecution.
A criminal offence is regarded as a crime against the state, and the victim or the complainant has no right to withdraw the complaint.
But certain offences which are not of serious nature are allowed to be compounded.
Compounding has same effect as acquittal from the charges.



Suresh Baboo V/s State of U.P. 1947 (2) JT (SC) 361 in which permission to compound in non-compoundable offence was granted.

Nowadays 498A is also declared as compoundable by SC

Criminal Procedure Code –
Section 320 - Compounding of offences.
The offences punishable under the sections of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860) specified in
The first two columns of the Table next following may be compounded by the persons mentioned in the third column of that Table.

(2) The offences punishable under the sections of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860) specified in
The first two columns of the table next following may, with the permission of the Court before
Which any prosecution for such offence is pending, be compounded by the persons mentioned in
The third column of that table:—

(3) When any offence is compoundable under this section, the abetment of such offence or an
Attempt to commit such offence (when such attempt is itself an offence) may be compounded in
Like manner.

(4)(a) When the person who would otherwise be competent to compound an offence under this
Section is under the age of eighteen years or is an idiot or a lunatic, any person competent to
Contract on his behalf, may, with the permission of the Court compound such offence.

(b) When the person who would otherwise be competent to compound an offence under this
Section is dead, the legal representative, as defined in the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of
1908) of such person may, with the consent of the Court compound such offence.

(5) When the accused has been committed for trial or when he has been convicted and an appeal
Is pending no composition for the offence shall be allowed without the leave of the Court to
Which he is committed, or, as the case may be, before which the appeal is to be heard.

(6) A High Court or Court of Session acting in the exercise of its powers of revision under
Section 401 may allow any person to compound any offence which such person is competent to
Compound under this section.

(7) No offence shall be compounded if the accused is, by reason of a previous conviction, liable
Either to enhanced punishment or to a punishment of a different kind for such offence.

(8) The composition of an offence under this section shall have the effect of an acquittal of the
Accused with whom the offence has been compounded.

(9) No offence shall be compounded except as provided by this section.

On March 5, 1997 the convicts Baldev Singh, Gurmail Singh and Hardeep Singh
Gang raped the victim in Punjab's Ludhiana district.

After that the session’s court had awarded 10 years imprisonment to the convicts.
Under Section 376(G) of the IPC, the minimum sentence to the gang rapists is 10 years, which may extend even to life imprisonment.

The Punjab and Haryana High Court had dismissed the convicts' appeal, following which they appealed in the Supreme Court.

After this the 3 rapist appealed in the Supreme Court of India.


This is not new Supreme Court of India has in past also allowed to compound the offences which were not mentioned in the list of offences.


But this is a Gang rape, rape how can it be compounded?

A bench of justices Markandeya Katju and Gyan Sudha Mishra reduced to three and half years the 10-year sentence awarded to three gang rapists who took the plea that both the convicts and the victim were now happily married to different people and "wanted to live peacefully."

Supreme Court agreed to let them off provided the convicts paid Rs 50,000 each to the victim.
Supreme Court ordered that "the amount shall be paid to the victim within three months", failing which the same shall be recovered under the Land Revenue Act from the trio and paid to the victim.

The offence of Gang Rape was committed 15 years back,

Justice Delayed Is Justice Denied.

Do not know but I did not like the idea of letting go of criminals, rapist by paying money and compromising the crime with the victim.

Normally the verdicts, judgment given by the Supreme Court of India are followed by lower courts of India.

Now the question is suppose tomorrow session court also starts to grant the compounding in offences of Gang Rape?

Is it not possible?

Does the crime of Gang Rape become Compoundable offence after this judgment of Supreme Court?


Reality views by sm –
Thursday, February 24, 2011