“Showing undue sympathy to the accused is unsustainable”, Supreme Court on HC’s verdict to reduce punishment

On April 4, 2023, the Supreme Court of India quashed the verdict of the Punjab and Haryana High Court and stated that it was unsustainable to show ‘undue sympathy’ to the accused. The verdict by the Punjab and Haryana HC reduced the sentence awarded to the accused from two years to eight months with a prior deposit of Rs. 25,000 as compensation to the victim’s family. During the hearing, the top Court observed that “The High Court has not at all considered the fact that the IPC is punitive and deterrent in nature. The principal aim and object are to punish offenders for offences committed under IPC (India Penal Code).” The top Court’s judgment was delivered on an appeal filed against HC’s decision by the state of Punjab which upheld the accused's conviction for offence under Section 304 A of the IPC. 

The accused was alleged of committing an offence of killing one person by driving an SUV in a rash and negligent manner. Due to the rash driving of an SUV by the accused, not only a person got killed but also two others sustained injuries, who were traveling . The bench stated that “The High Court has also not properly appreciated and considered the fact that due to the collision, the ambulance turned turtle. This shows the impact on the ambulance and the rash and negligent driving on the part of the accused.” Further added that appropriate and valid reasons were given by the trial Court while sentencing the accused to two years imprisonment.

While hearing the matter, the bench referred to a previous Supreme Court judgment and observed that the Apex Court had strictly emphasized the need to strictly punish the offenders causing motor vehicle accidents. Also, it determined that the principle of proportionality between punishment and crime was required to be borne in mind. After this, the Supreme Court declared the verdict, “Applying the law laid down by this court…to the facts of the case on hand, the impugned judgment and order passed by the High Court interfering with the sentence imposed by the trial court confirmed by the first appellate Court by showing undue sympathy to the accused is unsustainable and the same deserves to be quashed and set aside.” The bench restored the order given by the trial Court and gave four weeks time to the accused to surrender. 

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