Why Judge's Break the Nib of Their Pen after Passing a Death Sentence
There is more than one reason why a judge resorts to this action after he/she has passed the judgment. This act of breaking the nib is a very symbolic act. Judges break nib of the pen which signed the person's life away will never be used to do that ever again.
There has been this ritual of breaking the nib of their pen after passing the death sentence by Indian judges since the very time of the British Raj.
But have we ever thought of the reason for doing such an act? There is more than one reason why a judge resorts to this action after he/she has passed the judgment.
The death sentence is a very case. It is assigned to a person when the a person has done extreme anti-social acts which eventually snatches away his rights to live according to the laws. It actually is the last resort action in dealing with extremely anti-social acts that cannot be resolved in any other way.
The death sentence is a very case. It is assigned to a person when the a person has done extreme anti-social acts which eventually snatches away his rights to live according to the laws. It actually is the last resort action in dealing with extremely anti-social acts that cannot be resolved in any other way.
Why judges break the nib of the pen
- To express his compulsions for passing the death sentence, under compelling circumstances, and to ensure that nobody ever commits such heinous offense which invites such social stigma to the offender.
- Indian judges have been following the custom of breaking the nib of their pens after awarding a death sentence to a convict since the British Raj.
Here are the reasons why this practice continues in our courtrooms even today
- The practice is symbolic of the belief that a pen that is used to take away a person’s life should not be used ever again for other purposes. In other words, the pen has ‘tasted blood’, and thus it needs to be broken so that it doesn’t take another life.
- Also, after the judge passes the death sentence, he has no power to review or revoke his order. So once the sentence has been awarded and the judge’s signature inked, the nib is also broken, symbolic of the fact that the judge cannot cancel or rewrite the judgment if he/she has a change of heart or mind.
- Some are also of the belief that judges simply do away with the ‘tainted’ pen (having ordered the death of a person) as a way of distancing himself/herself from the judgment and the guilt of the same.
Over the world, 56 countries still retain the practice of capital punishment and 103 countries have abolished the practice de jure for all crimes, while 6 have abolished it for ordinary crimes.
