The fast track court in Thrissur awarded capital punishment to Govindachamy, the Soumya rape and murder case accused. In an incident that sent shock-waves throughout the State, Govindachamy assaulted 23-year-old Soumya in a deserted ladies’ compartment on February 1 this year. He then pushed her out of the running train, carried her to a secluded spot along the rail tracks and brutally raped her. The accused also injured her seriously resulting in her death on February 6. City Express asked students from various colleges in the city whether he deserves capital punishment for the crime.Kapil Chandran, Government Law CollegeThough Govindachami deserves maximum punishment, I don’t personally believe that the court should resort to capital punishment. Death penalty violates human rights. It does not serve as a deterrent since the culprit does not get a chance to regret. He is sentenced to death all of a sudden which does not serve the purpose. It would have been better if he was imprisoned for 60 or 70 years. The law which imposes an eye for eye or a hand for hand policy is barbaric. But I do appreciate the speedy procedures of the court. There are chances of the death sentence being reduced to life imprisonment, if the case is moved to the Supreme court. Rahana Mansoor, Maharaja's CollegeThe court should immediately sentence Govindachamy. He doesn’t have any regrets and is behaving as though he had done something heroic. Giving life sentence to a socially evil element like him won’t help. Such people deserve maximum punishment. We need to consider the bankruptcy of our society where there are lawyers to defend people like Govindachami. The court should also try to probe the whereabouts of the mafia gang which had hired top lawyers to defend him. Shameena N A, Kerala Press AcademyThe decision of the court to give death sentence to Govindachamy is indeed correct because he deserves nothing less than death. The court should not postpone the verdict or he might appeal for a bail. There is no point in keeping a person in jail where the culprits are provided with all facilities. Soumya is a representative for all the woman in Kerala. No other woman should go through such a horrific incident. The punishment serves as a lesson to all Govindachamys.Flavin Thomas, St Albert’s collegeI don’t think the decision of the court is accurate. Govindachamy deserves something more merciless than death. Like it happens to culprits in countries like Saudi Arabia, the court should chop his legs and hands. This will create a sense of terror among culprits like him. If the person is put to death all of a sudden, he will not understand the pain of the girl whom he brutally murdered.
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