Section 376DB IPC: Supreme Court asks whether remission can be granted to those sentenced to life for gang-rape of minor girls

The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked whether a provision of law which bars grant of remission to convicts sentenced to life imprisonment for gang rape of girls below 12 years, can be interpreted by courts to allow such remission [Nikhil Shivaji Golait v. Union of India and anr]. .Currently, Section 376DB of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) prescribes life sentence for the remainder of natural life without remission as the minimum punishment for gang-rape of girls under twelve years of age. A bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Pankaj Mithal hinted that a Constitutional court allowing scope for remission in violation of the law will amount to 'doing violence' to the text of the statute.'Can a Constitutional court interpret the Section to say life imprisonment means only for a certain number of years despite the text saying till 'natural life' of convict? Can we do violence with the statute?" Justice Oka asked..The Court was hearing a plea challenging the Constitutional validity of Section 376DB of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) to the extent it prescribes life imprisonment for the remainder of the natural life of the convict as the minimum sentence.The petitioner is a convict serving a sentence of life imprisonment without remission.The provision which was introduced in response to the Nirbhaya case has been challenged as violative of Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution since it takes away all possibilities of reformation of an individual.Citing past cases, the petitioner argued that in many cases where a person has been convicted of raping a minor girl, courts have commuted their death sentence to life imprisonment which runs to 20, 25 or 30 years.However, if the life sentence has to be till the person dies, the said imprisonment may be even 40 years or 50 years, which is totally disproportionate to the offence committed, the plea said..When the matter was heard on Tuesday, Attorney General (AG) R Venkataramani representing the Central government, pointed out that a new penal code is being discussed by parliament, and suggested that the matter be deferred till then.The Court, however, pointed out that the old penal code would in any case continue to hold the field till then and needs to be interpreted in the instant case.The AG then said,"Courts can read a statute a certain way, but it will be tied by the law. The appellate courts can interpret life sentence. It will be exercising [of] a kind of hybrid jurisdiction if it relaxes (the meaning of natural life)."The judges then said that the issue will have to be heard at some length. The case will be considered next on December 5..Advocate Gaurav Agarwal appeared for the petitioner-convict.