The High Court yesterday declared illegal and unconstitutional the provision of awarding death sentence under the Women and Children Repression Prevention (Special) Act 1995.

Section 6(2) of the act carried out the provision of awarding death sentence to any person for killing any woman or child after rape.

The bench comprising lustice Md Iman Ali and Justice Sheikh Abdul Awal delivered the verdict following a writ petition filed by Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST) and Sukur Ali of Manikganj district, a condemned convict, challenging legality of the act.

The court also stayed the execution of death sentence of Sukur Ali, son of Hashem Mondal of Manikganj for two months. He was given capital punishment under the section in a rape and murder case filed in 1999.

In its verdict, the court observed that whatever is the nature of crimes, death penalty cannot be the only punishment for the criminals as per the constitutional provision.

The court said the circumstantial condition and credibility of evidences and witnesses should be taken into consideration in awarding punishment. If death is the only option for crimes then the jurisdiction of the judges are restrained. Advocate Ruhul Quddus, counsel for one of the petitioners, told reporters that under the criminal law the provision of death sentence should not be the only option as the punishment for the criminals.

From now on death penalty should not be the only option for the criminals following the HC verdict, he added.

The Women and Children Repression Prevention (Special) Act 1995 has been replaced by the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act 2000 with a provision of life-term imprisonment and capital punishment as an alternative.

On July 12, 2001, the Women and Children Repression Prevention Special Tribunal of Manikganj awarded capital punishment to SukurAli, now in Dhaka jail.

Later Sukur filed an appeal with the HC against the trial court verdict. But the HC on February 25, 2004 upheld the j udgment of the trial court and the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court also upheld the HC verdict on February 23, 2005.

Then BLAST and Sukur Ali filed a writ petition with the HC on December 2005 challenging constitutional validity of the section.

After two days of the writ, the court issued a rule upon the government to show cause as to why the provision of the act under which the case was filed and trial was done should not be declared unconstitutional and without lawful authority.