Abstract
The adversarial model of criminal justice, with punishing the offender as its main aim, has proven counterproductive. Mounting arrears in the court, delay in the disposal of cases, and consistently rising rates of acquittals resulted in the loss of public confidence in the system. In India, hundreds of reports from different bodies and individuals are testimony to the fact that the system in the country is virtually collapsed. This chapter establishes that in a democratic country like India, while keeping the adversarial system for certain serious and complex offenses, India needs to experiment with more democratic models aimed at reconciliation and restoration of relationships through restorative justice. Further, this system with more democratic models aimed at reconciliation and restoration of relationships is a welcome step, particularly in the matter of rape offenses, juvenile justice, and family disputes; thereby providing a viable alternative to the criminal justice system.
TopIntroduction
Restorative justice is an extremely striking theory in the field of victimology and criminology. It is best accomplished through cooperative process that include all stakeholders. The accepted hallmarks of restorative justice are: (A) Victim and offender Mediation. (B) Family or Group conferencing. (c) Peace-making and sentencing Circles (Thilagaraj, 2017).
The importance of restorative justice can be traced through the Vienna Declaration on Crime and Justice: Meeting the Challenges of the Twenty-first Century, 2000 (Vienna Declaration, 2001), which encouraged and promised the “development of restorative justice policies, procedures and programmes that are respectful of the rights, needs and interests of victims, offenders, communities and all other parties”. In August 2002, the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC Resolution, 2002/120) adopted a resolution calling upon Member States that are implementing restorative justice programmes to draw on a set of basic principles on the use of Restorative Justice Programmes in Criminal Matters. In 2005, the declaration of the 11th United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders (11th UN congress) urged Member States to recognize the importance of further developing restorative justice policies, procedures and programmes that include alternatives to prosecution (Restorative Justice Programmes, 2017). Hence, restorative justice was needed as a tool for the reformation of our criminal justice system.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Restorative Justice: It is based on restitution that meet with the harm as caused by the criminal to the victim of crime.
Criminal Justice System: the system of law enforcement that is directly involved in apprehending, prosecuting, defending, sentencing, and punishing those who are suspected or convicted of criminal offenses.
Compounding of cases: To settle a matter by a money payment, in lieu of other liability.
Quasi- Judicial Institutions: It is an agency having powers and procedures resembling that of a Court of Law or Judge, and which is obliged to objectively determine facts and draw conclusions from them so as to provide the basis of an official action.
Victimized: Cruel or unjust treatment on victim by the accused.
Restorative process: It means any process in which the victim, the offender and/or any other individuals or community members affected by a crime actively participate together in the resolution of matters arising from the crime, often with the help of a fair and impartial third party.
Plea Bargaining: It is an arrangement between prosecutor and defendant whereby the defendant pleads guilty to a lesser charge in exchange for a more lenient sentence.