Which of the following are the rights of the accused (of a criminal offence) as guaranteed by the Indian Constitution?

1. No person would be punished for the same offense more than once.

2. No person shall be asked to give evidence against himself or herself.

3. No criminal law shall declare any action as illegal from a backdate.

Select the correct answer using the code given below.

Solution

Our Constitution ensures that persons accused of various offences would also get sufficient protection. Article 20 grants protection against arbitrary and excessive punishment to an accused person, whether citizen or foreigner or legal people like a company or a corporation. To ensure a fair trial in courts, the Constitution has provided three rights: o No double jeopardy: No person would be punished for the same offence more than once. o No ex-post-facto law: No person shall be (i) convicted of any offence except for violation of a law in force at the time of the commission of the act, i.e. No law shall declare any action as illegal from a backdate (ii) subjected to a penalty greater than that prescribed by the law in force at the time of the commission of the act. o No self-incrimination: No person shall be asked to give evidence against himself or herself. Hence all the statements are correct.