Section 303

This section was meant to deter the most hardened offenders, those already serving a life sentence, from committing further murders, by removing any lesser sentencing option. However, mandating a fixed death sentence with no judicial discretion was found to conflict with constitutional guarantees of a fair, individualised sentencing process. Note: the mandatory death penalty prescribed here was struck down by the Supreme Court as unconstitutional; courts have since applied normal murder sentencing (life imprisonment or death, at judicial discretion) to such cases instead. Under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, this specific mandatory provision was not retained in its original form, since it had already been held unconstitutional.

The Supreme Court struck down the mandatory death sentence under this section as unconstitutional, holding that a law which removes all judicial discretion in sentencing and imposes a single, mandatory punishment violates the guarantee of a fair and individualised sentencing process; courts must instead weigh the facts of each case, including the earlier life sentence, when deciding between life imprisonment and death for a subsequent murder.

• Myth: This section still requires an automatic death sentence for anyone already serving life imprisonment who commits another murder.
  Fact: The Supreme Court struck down the mandatory death sentence here as unconstitutional; judges now retain discretion to choose between life imprisonment and death, considering the facts of each case.