Thu Sep 25 02:29:06 UTC 2025: Okay, here’s a summarized version of the text and a rewritten news article based on that summary.
**Summary:**
The Supreme Court of India has agreed to hear the Centre’s plea on October 8th regarding the formulation of guidelines that are victim and society-centric in heinous cases that attract the death penalty. This plea, initially filed in January 2020, argues that existing guidelines are primarily focused on the accused and convicts, neglecting the trauma experienced by victims and their families, as well as the need for a deterrent effect of capital punishment. The Centre seeks modifications to the 2014 Shatrughan Chauhan case guidelines, and at the time of filing the plea, they advocated for a seven-day deadline for execution after the issuance of a black warrant, citing delays in the Nirbhaya case as an example of convicts abusing the judicial process.
**News Article:**
**Supreme Court to Hear Plea for Victim-Centric Death Penalty Guidelines**
*New Delhi, September 25, 2025* – The Supreme Court of India has announced it will hear a plea on October 8th regarding the establishment of guidelines that prioritize the victim and society in heinous cases where the death penalty is a possibility. The Centre’s application, initially filed in January 2020, argues that the current guidelines disproportionately focus on the rights and protections of the accused and convicts, neglecting the immense suffering endured by victims and their families.
The bench, consisting of Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta, and N. V. Anjaria, will examine the Centre’s request to modify the guidelines established in the 2014 Shatrughan Chauhan case. The Centre contends that the existing framework overlooks the “irreparable mental trauma, agony, upheaval, and derangement of the victims and their family members, the collective conscience of the nation, and the deterrent effect which the capital punishment intends to make.”
The government filed the plea amid public outcry over delays in the execution of the perpetrators in the 2012 Nirbhaya gang-rape and murder case. It has urged the court to fix a seven-day deadline for the execution of condemned prisoners after a black warrant has been issued to prevent convicts from exploiting legal loopholes.
The Centre’s application emphasizes the need for a balance between the rights of the accused and the rights of the victims and society, particularly in cases that “shake the collective conscience of the court.” The Supreme Court will now weigh these arguments and consider potential modifications to the existing death penalty guidelines.
First Piper 