07 May 2010

death to kasab

Since yesterday, when the death sentence for Kasab was announced, there is unbridled joy being expressed by the media and the people in general. The splurge of posts on social networking sites celebrating the judgment takes on various hues. Some condemn the time and money spent on his trial for what should have been an open-and-shut case. Some praise the Indian judicial system which allows even someone like Kasab to undergo a fair trial, and some just resort to jingoistic balderdash.


There is another group of people who dwell upon the morality of the death penalty and whether such a ‘heinous’ act should be abolished altogether, like in some countries. This group assumes that death penalty is an inhuman or heinous act. In my opinion, it isn’t so. As a matter of fact, a death sentence is probably the mildest form of retribution for someone who has no hope of evading the law. Amongst all fears that plague us, fear of death is probably the one which is least encountered. How many of us are actually afraid of dying, how many of us even ever think about dying, which is in fact the only certainly of life. Each of us is going to die anyhow, so how does death become a punishment. In fact, the quick death by the noose is perhaps much easier to endure than a slow painful death.

And does awarding the death penalty become a deterrent? Certainly not. How can something which you or anyone you know has never experienced become a deterrent? Suffering, we all know, or can at least imagine, but death? Moreover, a quick death ensures that someone like Kasab, so heavily indoctrinated with his fanaticism takes his hatred to the grave with him. So, it’s just a proponent of an ideology who dies, the dogma itself still survives, and in fact, flourishes, emphasized by the assumed martyr who gave his life for it.

On the other hand, if such a criminal is subjected to life-long torment, with no respite or hope, the aura associated with his act gradually fades away, both in his own as well as his supporters’ eyes. In the never-ending anguish, the perpetrator may even realize the futility of his crime. As for retribution, what can be a bigger revenge than having someone spend his whole life confined within four walls in sub-human living conditions? The ideas that he lives on are likely to wither away in a matter of months and he becomes a despicable reckless individual, detested because of his actions, but certainly not revered for his beliefs. For a religious fanatic, the death penalty is a sort of corroboration of his viewpoint. It just endorses the filmy cliché ‘it’s better to die with your head held high than to go through an agonizing existence forever facing ridicule, scorn and contempt’.

4 comments:

Pooja Nair said...

i agree!

masroor said...

it is true.for such a fanatic believer lke ksab death is a bliss and the gateway to paradise

Rahul said...

100% agree, death is too little for Kasab, we have lost out a lot in becoming civilized....

There is a need to take away the hallow of being a martyr (in certain circles) and also to make them across as pitiful, comical creatures so that their example cannot be painted in heroic terms to inspire others to follow their footsteps....

In my opinion this fellow should be kept in an iron cage like a parrot and fed an unchanging diet of milk and rice for the rest of his days. Moreover, he should be kept in a public place (with proper security measures) always open to the gaze, the jeers and the spitting of the public. If we can make him live out day after long day, unchanging and being attacked psychologically, it would also remind others of how much they will be throwing away by following his example.....

Anyways, that was just my flight of fancy.......

Anonymous said...

well i am a tad late to comment on this but i happenedto read this blog today only,honestly i feel pity for kasab for the kind of life he lived, not for his death,he never had a chance to live his life ,he and others like him only survive,as we know poverty is the biggest culprit here.celebrating the death of someone like him makes us look like retards.focus should be on better life conditions for all ,only this will ensure that u may not face many more like him in the future.