DEATH PENALTY ON RAPE IN STATE OF PUNJAB: AN EMPHIRICAL STUDY

The rise of sexual assault in India, is a trend that has been influenced by multiple factors namely socio-cultural, legal, economic, and historical aspects. The research work presented in this paper, focuses on how the law of rape has changed from the traditions of the ancient and the medieval times, to the colonial laws and the modern reforms of the Criminal Law Amendments and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023. First, it delves into patriarchal values which have a strong grip in society, caste-based discrimination, structural inequalities inherited from history as well as the perception of "honor" and how all these have influenced the recognition and the prosecution of Sexual Violence. By doing doctrinal and descriptive research, the paper analyses the changes of the statutes, investigations of the courts, and legal systems. To support its arguments, it also refers to the data obtained from the public opinion survey in which 73 people took part. The findings point to a considerable gap between reforms in law and their implementation on the ground. The public remains sceptical of the justice system despite the fact that they are also overwhelmingly in Favor of strict punishments, such as the death penalty. The examples of judiciary in Punjab and the PHHC reveal how the court is careful in applying the rarest of rare principle in rape cases and, therefore, showing the differences in the punishment of crimes and the urgency of the establishment of uniform guidelines for that matter. The research argues that the existence of heavier penalties, including in cases of death - punishments that are mostly of symbolic and deterrent nature - is not enough to bring about real justice.