Theories of Punishment

Theories of Punishment

1. Deterrent Theory
2. Retributive Theory
3. Preventive Theory
4. Reformative Theory

1. What is Punishment?
Punishment is the act of inflicting a consequence or penalty on someone as a result of
their wrongdoing, or the consequence or penalty itself. In other words, A penalty imposed
on an offender for a crime or wrongdoing.
Black Law Dictionary defines punishment as, “in criminal Law, any pain, penalty,
suffering, or confinement inflicted upon a person by the authority of the law and the
judgment and sentence of a court, for some crime or offense committed by him, or for his
omission of a duty enjoined by law”.
Types of Punishment
Punishments are either Corporal or Non-corporal.
The punishments which are Corporal includes:
1. Death, which is usually denominated capital punishment;
2. Imprisonment, which is either with or without labor; vide Penitentiary;
3. Whipping, in some states;
4. Banislunent and death
The punishments which are Non-corporal includes:
1. Fines;
2. Forfeiture;
3. Suspension or deprivation of some political or civil right, deprivation of office, and
being rendered incapable to hold office;
4. Compulsion to remove nuisances.
Punishment in Criminal Laws of Bangladesh
According to Section 53 of the Penal Code, 1860 (Act No. XLV of 1860), in Bangladesh,
there are five categories of punishment:
1. Death sentence;
2. Imprisonment for life;
3. Imprisonment;
4. Forfeiture of property; and
5. Fines
The imprisonment may be ’simple’ or ’rigorous' (hard labor), ranging from the minimum
of 24 hours for drunken or disorderly conduct to a maximum of 14 years at hard labor for
more serious offenses. Juvenile offenders may be sentenced to detention in reform
schools.
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Theories of Punishment or,
Kinds of Punishment under Criminal Laws

The ancient punishments were brought to England. Until the 19
th
century, the Death
Penalty or Capital Punishment was imposed in England for more than 200 different
crimes. Most of these crimes were petty violations, such as pick-pocketing or swindling.
Until the 19
th
century, corporal punishment in England could consist of whipping,
branding, or the cutting off of a body part. Noses, ears, hands, fingers, toes, and feet were
all subject to removal for criminal acts. The American colonies adopted and cultivated
the traditional punishments of England. The most common punishments were corporal
and capital.
In the words of Sir John Salmond, “The ends of criminal justice are four in number,
and in respect to the purposes served by the them punishment can be divided as:
1. Deterrent Theory
2. Retributive Theory
3. Preventive Theory
4. Reformative Theory
1. Deterrent (প্রতিবন্ধক) Theory
The term “Deter” means to abstain from doing an act. The main purpose of this theory is
to deter (prevent) the criminals from doing the crime or repeating the same crime in future.
Under this theory, severe (strong) punishments are inflicted upon the offender so that he
abstains from committing a crime in future and it would also be a lesson to the other
members of the society, as to what can be the consequences of committing a crime. This
theory has proved effective, even though it has certain defects.
2. Retributive (প্রতিশ োধোত্মক) Theory
This theory of punishment is based on the principle- “An eye for an eye, a tooth for a
tooth, blood for blood”. Retribute means to give in turn. The object of this theory is to
make the criminal realize the suffering of the pain by subjecting him to the same kind of
pain as he had inflicted on the victim. This theory aims at taking a revenge rather than
social welfare and transformation. In ancient times, if somebody was murdered, his
relatives used to find out the murderer and kill him and thus took revenge on him.
Although this theory was popular in the ancient time, but the theory has not been
supported by the Criminologists, A Penologists and Sociologists as they feel that this
theory is brutal and baric.
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3. Preventive (প্রতিশেধক) Theory
The preventive theory is founded on the idea of preventing repetition of crime by
disabling the offender through measures such as imprisonment, forfeiture, death
punishment and suspension of license. As per this theory, the idea is to keep the offender
away from the society. This criminal under this theory is punished with death, life
imprisonment etc. This theory has been criticized by some jurists.
We well remember the works of a judge who uttered the following sentence, while
awarding punishment to the criminal, “I am giving punishment to you not because you
stole the sheep but because of the fact that people should not steal sheep in future”.
4. Reformative (সংস্কোরসোধক) Theory
The supports of Reformative Theory maintain that crime is a kind of disease and the
criminal should be treated well, so that he may be able to recover from this disease. Crime
should be diagnosed and then Proper treatment should be given to the criminal. The idea
behind this theory is that- “no one is a born Criminal and criminals are also humans”.
Under this theory, it is believed that if the criminals are trained and educated, they can be
transformed into law abiding citizens. This theory has been proved to be successful and
accepted by many jurists.
Many writers on this subject are of the opinion that a person commits a crime only because
he was not taught moral Lessons in his childhood, or he is extremely poor, he does not
have square meals or lives or had to live in the polluted social environment or had been
living in the company of bad person like thieves, dacoits and gamblers and drunkards or
is suffering from some mental disease. The supporters of Reformative theory opine that
the government should adopt measures to remove such bad conditions and thus prevent
crime.
5. Expiatory (প্রোয়তিত্তমূলক) Theory
Under this theory, it is believed that if the offender expiates or repents and realizes his
mistake, he must be forgiven.
6. Modern Theory of Punishment
Modern Theory of Punishment is a combination of all the theories discussed above.
Retributive Theory is applied in the civil courts. In other words, the monetary loss of
the sufferer is compensated and the criminal has to compensate for the loss.
Preventive and Deterrent Theory is applied to the old and habitual criminals so that
they feel harassed and terrified enough not to repeat the crimes. If the old and habitual
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criminals are not given severe (strong) punishment, law and order cannot be maintained
in the state and there will be a rapid increase in the number of criminals.
These days, education is given to criminals and they are taught the lessons of morality in
jails. In addition to this, it is also necessary that the state should give punishment
according to the degree of crime. If it happens to be a gravest crime, severest punishment
should be given, otherwise in case of ordinary crimes mild punishment should be
awarded.
There should be separate jails for juvenile delinquents and more comforts should be
given to them. Justice should not be delayed and the conditions of jails should be
improved. Dark cells should be demolished in order to keep the prisoners in good
health.
While giving punishment to the criminal, his age, personal record and his social and
economic conditions should be kept in mind.
In addition to this, the judge should keep it in his mind very well, what effect the
punishment, which is to be awarded to him, will leave on the dynasty of the criminal and
on the law and order situation in the state. Provision for the Jail should be made for the
juvenile delinquents. The aim of these jails is not to punish but to educate the delinquents.

Locke maintained that punishment should have certain aims. They are as
follows:
(a) The process of punishment should aim at the social good. Severest punishment
should be given for the gravest crime and light punishment for a light crime;
(b) The injured persons should be treated well;
(c) Punishment should aim at preventing the criminal from repeating the crime;
(d) Punishment should prove a sort of warning to others.

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http://lawnn.com/theories-punishment-kinds-punishment-criminal-law/
http://www.politicalsciencenotes.com/articles/4-theories-of-punishment-for-the-smooth-
running-of-society/284



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