Kinds of Punishment
1. Capital Punishment– This is one of the oldest form of punishments. Even our IPC prescribes this punishment for certain crimes. A lot of countries have either abolished this punishment or are on their way to abolish it.
Indian Judiciary has vacillating and indecisive stand on this punishment. There have been plethora of cases where heinous and treacherous crime was committed yet Capital Punishment was not awarded to the criminal.
2. Deportation or Transportation– This is also a very old form of punishment. It was practised in India during the British Rule. The criminal is put in a secluded place or in a different society.
Critics of this punishment believe that the person will still cause trouble in the society where he is being deported.
3. Corporal Punishment– Corporal punishment is a form of physical punishment that involves the deliberate infliction of pain on the wrongdoer. This punishment is abolished in our country but it exists in some Middle Eastern Countries. Critics say that it is highly inhuman and ineffective.
4. Imprisonment– This type of punishment serves the purpose of three theories, Deterrent, Preventive and Reformative.
Under Deterrent Theory, it helps in setting an example.
It disables the offender from moving outside, thus serving the purpose of Preventive Theory.
iii. If the government wishes to reform the prisoner, it can do so while the person is serving his imprisonment, thus serving the purpose of Reformative Theory.
1. Solitary Confinement– Solitary confinement is a form of imprisonment in which a prisoner is isolated from any human contact. It is an aggravated form of punishment.
It is said that it fully exploits and destroys the sociable nature of men. Critics say that it is inhuman too.
2. Indeterminate Sentence– In such a sentence, the accused is not sentenced for any fixed period.
The period is left indeterminate while awarding and when the accused shows improvement, the sentence may be terminated. It is also reformative in nature.
