India Among 34 Countries In UN To Vote Against Resolution On Death Penalty

India reiterated that its laws have specific provisions for suspension of the death penalty in the case of pregnant women and has rulings that prohibited executions of persons with mental or intellectual disabilities, while juvenile offenders cannot be sentenced to death under any circumstances.

Joshi added that death sentences in India must also be confirmed by a superior court and an accused has the right to appeal to a High Court or the Supreme Court. Human rights groups have criticised India's use of death penalty and have repeatedly asked India to end the "distressing" use of executions and move towards abolishing the death penalty.

Last year, India executed Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru just three months after it hanged the lone surviving 26/11 terrorist Ajmal Kasab in a Pune jail. In September last year, four men were sentenced to death for raping and murdering a young woman in New Delhi in December 2012, a tragedy that sparked wide-spread protests and anger across the country and united its citizens in seeking justice for the  student, who died in a Singapore hospital.

A related draft amendment tabled in the third committee was rejected by a vote of 55 in favour, 85 against, with 22 abstentions.

By that text, the General Assembly would reaffirm the sovereign right of all countries to develop their own legal systems, including determining appropriate legal penalties, in accordance with their international law obligations. India voted in favour of the amendment.

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