Community service sentence as an alternative mode of punishment in India - analysis of the potential and feasibility

Abstract

The Criminal Justice System is gradually shifting towards including reformative and rehabilitative notions rather than being strictly deterrent and preventive. There are various modes of punishment prescribed under the penal law of India1 and need has been felt to incorporate the alternative sanctions within the penal law so as to enable the Courts to exercise wide powers in sentencing the offenders and enforcing different sanctions as per the circumstances and factors of the case. The research studies one of such alternate sanction called ‘community service sentence’. It is an order of the Court under which an offender is required to perform unpaid work of benefit to the community under the supervision of the Probation Officer, who shall also provide rehabilitative counselling and appropriate guidance to the offender.The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 provides for it but the general penal law of India i.e. the Indian Penal Code 1860 does not provide for ‘community service sentence’ as a mode of punishment. However, the Courts in India have been awarding such punishments to the persons convicted. Therefore, it is imperative to question by what jurisdiction the Courts in India (all levels –trial, High Courts and the Apex Court) have been awarding such punishments. The research aims to study the concept of ‘community service sentence’ as an alternate mode of punishment in India along with the jurisdictional constraints of the courts in India and attempts to analyse the effectiveness of this mode of punishment under Indian law. Key Words- reformative, community service sentence, jurisdictional constraints, alternate mode of punishment, sentencing.