CONCEPT OF PUNISHMENT HAS CHANGED FROM RETRIBUTION TO REFORMATION

Introduction:

Man is a social being. They are bound to stay in a cooperative society which is protected by the coercion. Coercion in simple terms can be referred as the state where the concerned authority holds the complete right to punish those individuals who contravenes the rules and the regulations made by the society. In the words of Law, it is summarized as a duress crime. Law is considered as an important aspect of the society to maintain the general safety and ensure the protection of our rights against the illicit acts and abuses by other citizens.

For the enforcement of law in a systematic manner, punishment is needed. Without punishment, the coercion of the law is disabled. In the absence of law and order, a chaotic disorder is created in the society and government is unable to curb the crime rate and secure the basic rights of people. The two concepts of punishment i.e the retributive and the reformative are explained below along with their transformation from the retributive theory to the later one.