Stop hanging to execute prisoners, says judge

There are times when the neck is reportedly not broken and the prisoner strangles to death. His eyes almost pop out of his head while his tongue swells and protrudes from the mouth.

The rope many times takes large portions of skin and flesh from the side of the face.

The book quotes the Law Commission of India as comparing in a consultation paper the three main methods of execution - hanging, shooting and lethal injection.

According to the consultation paper, the process of lethal injection takes only five to nine minutes to declare a person dead - in contrast to the 40 minutes taken when he is hanged.

In lethal injection, no mutilation takes place. It is also painless and swift besides being the best controlled way of execution.

The book says: "It is high time Indian system of executions be revisited and options other than hanging be analysed for the purpose of execution of the death sentence."