India's criminal system has an acute backlog of crisis. Even after 70 years of independence and a well-defined set of legal backgrounds, our nation stands in the 67th position in crime rate among the top 135 countries in the world. Recent reports of the National Crime Report Bureau (NCRB) show a major increase in crime rate with each passing year. Many of these issues are persisting due to the understaffed, overburdened police force and the interference of the political power in criminal cases.

These are the two major reasons for a crime to go unsolved in our nation. The number of pendency and unsolved crimes weigh equal to or maybe more than the crimes which are solved in our country. For instance, if we take a count of 100, almost 75% of the police are lured to money and power and for such material comforts, they tend to cover up most of the facts and bring up fictions in most of the crimes or murder cases which are to be investigated in utmost honesty.

As a common man, when we hear about a crime, the most vibrating question would be whether the criminals are more intelligent or are it the lack of efficiency by the police force. The previous statement could be the most appropriate answer to it. In addition to it, if we take a measure of IQ-Crime correlation, there would be a negative correlation which states that individuals with less intelligence are committed to more crime than individuals with more intelligence.

Most of the crimes happening in our society are due to the factors like discrimination and poverty. Individuals who severely adhered to such factors tend to behave in such an emotional and revengeful manner; even 25% of the honest police force will face difficulties to solve the crimes.

There is another set of crimes happening. Those are the most high-profile cases, where big shots are involved. Such cases get covered up or get beaten around the bush until their relevance gets reduced. The highlighted reason for a crime being still is due to the huge money power and it is the dominant reason of all the reasons.

Introduction
The etymology of crime is from the Old French crimne, which is a Latin crimen meaning accusation and the Latin root cerno meaning I decide. I give judgment. [1]The criminal cases happening around in the present decade are exactly the portrayal of the etymology of crime. Even though there is not any proper definition of crime, it is normally considered to be an evil act against a human being or against the state which is generally punishable by law.

A crime or a criminal activity generally portrays the character of a person. There comes the action of the phrase I decide. I give judgment. In most of the scenarios, people commit crimes for the satisfaction of their vengefulness. There are other cases also where their social background drives them to commit such criminal activities and eventually, it becomes part of their habitual traits. There is another set of people who genuinely intend to do a heinous act on the pretext to satisfy their soul. This is where the serial killers and unsolved murders come into the picture. Psychological traits of such people generally lead to such serial killings.

But still, the question arises. If a crime goes unsolved, is the psychological factor the only reason which leads to it? An unhealthy social environment is also a key factor added with the power of purse and mastery involvement. Lack of efficiency and lured to material subjects by the sovereign power is the addition to it. Due to these additions, there are numerous cases pending before the courts are unsolved and unattended. Justice is being denied to the victims. A common man who depends upon the law and order of the nation is again being fooled by the people who execute the same.

Criminal Behaviour And Serial Crimes

Understanding criminal behavior is a challenge. Prejudice is one of the most common mistakes all people make. People may look decent, but most of the time they don't. In many charming and innocent faces, people hide a lot of dark secrets and habits. Criminal behavior is one of them. Criminal addiction usually occurs when people distance themselves from society, lead intimate lives, and believe that they are not bound by laws or similar rules set by society.

Criminal behavior can be also viewed as an illegal behavior that has a deviant nature. Such behavior with deviant nature consists of "only those situations in which behavior is in a disapproved direction and of sufficient degree to exceed the tolerance limit of the community[2]. Such behavior arises in a person due to many factors. No one is a born criminal. But there are conditions in which the deviant nature of someone builds up due to genetic imbalances.

If we try to categorize, there will be three to four types of such kind:

1. Firstly, an ordinary man who had to indulge in criminal activities due to the overwhelming circumstances and naturally became a part of their lives.
2. Secondly, are those who were born with such behavior due to mental deficiency and related illness.
3. Thirdly, are those normal individuals who get carried away by certain irresistible forces like crime fiction or real life incidents or due to delinquent and antisocial peer groups and substance abuse from family and friends.
4. Fourthly, are those genuine criminals who just do to satisfy their sadistic needs and lust for blood and pain; it can be also due to non-medical reasons.

Certain criminal behavioral traits are seen in the younger ages themselves. Demographic situations and substantial abuses from parents and relatives highly inflict the mental state of a child. Lack of love and care from parents and exclusion from society can have negative impacts on their mental state. A real-life example of such a situation with an additional element of mental disorder has happened in India which gave birth to the youngest psychopath murderer, Amarjeet Sada.

At a very young age, Sada satisfied his lust for blood by committing three murders of infants among one of which is his blood-related sister. Even though he committed three murders, due to lack of evidence, he was only charged and punished under Juvenile Law for only one of his murders.

This case proves the above-briefed scenario that an unpleasant and abusive childhood can have a great impact on a child's life, which can be harmful, and that deviant and sadistic nature gets intensified as they grow into adults.

Many fiction and crime series novels and films were portrayed by numerous writers. The reasons for the main protagonist in such fiction were due to the injustice and abuse they had to face. Thomas Harris was one of the profound novelists who introduced such a character to society. The character, Hannibal Lecter, was created inspired by a real-life doctor Alfredo Ballí Treviño who was convicted for murdering his gay lover.

Even though Alfredo devoted his life after imprisonment in serving and treating poor people free of cost, he was a murderer who committed homicides, clandestine burials, and usurping his profession and was also held guilty and punished for the same.

Hannibal was nicknamed Hannibal the cannibal. At the age of 8, Hannibal and his family had to run away from their castle due to an overrun by Nazi forces. Hannibal and his family fed on animals for three years and later, his family, tutors other family members were killed in a blast started by Nazi forces which further led to the captivity of him and his sister Mischa, with whom he had a great bond.

Running out of food sources, Mischa was killed and cannibalized by their captivated group. Traumatized Hannibal escaped out of the group and wandered over the forest for years until the Soviet tank crew returned him to his family castle, which was turned into an orphanage. Traumatized by his sister's death and the bullying nature of his inmate kids, made him torture and severely wound such bullying kids.

Later at the age of 13, he was adopted by his uncle Robert Lecter and maintained a close relationship with his uncle and aunt. The care, love, and inspiration to study given by his guardians, tightened his bond with them; but still traumatized. It was then he attacked a local butcher in retaliation for an obscene insult to his aunt. Robert died due to the confrontation with the butcher.

Enraged, Hannibal then murdered the butcher, slashing with a Tanto. He then beheaded the butcher, sliced his cheeks and cooked with mushroom, and ate. This was his first willful act of cannibalism. He even returned to where his sister died, hunted down the people who caused her death, and killed and cannibalized them.

Later on, practicing as a psychiatrist, he continued to spree his killings. He also continued his cannibalism and instead of treating his psychic patients, he encouraged them to act violently just because it was entertaining.

Lecter was a pure sociopath. He was way too stronger for his appearance and did not fit in any known psychological profile. Unlike many other sociopath killers, Hannibal did not exhibit pleasure from killing. But he was no remorse for his actions. Lecter simply described himself as being evil, stating that psychiatry is puerile, and was wrong to categorize different kinds of evil as different behavioral conditions and that people should be responsible for their actions.

Lecter then supported this by stating that the inconsistencies in his behavior were traits of pure evil and that he did not possess a behavioral abnormality[3]. Even though he was extremely brutal in nature, he showed courtesy towards people who were kind and treated him with respect.

If we take a psychoanalytical study of the character Hannibal Lecter, his life and mental state changed drastically after his sister's murder following cannibalism, which left him traumatized. But his intelligence outstood magnificently. His vengeance and sadistic nature can be explained from a self-defense mechanism point of view.

Sigmund Freud introduced the concept of Repression. Repression is an unconscious defense mechanism employed by the ego to keep disturbing or threatening thoughts from becoming conscious[4]. Such a condition happens when someone is highly traumatized. Hannibal was completely devastated after his sister being cannibalized and his conscious mind could not accept his inability to protect his sister. He could picture the events of his sister's death only in his dreams and dreams happen in an unconscious mind, thus explaining he lived in repression.

There are three types of personality traits as per Freud's psychoanalytical theory. First is id, second is ego and third is the superego. Id is the primary and intellectual part of the mind that contains abusive and digressive nature and hidden memories in it. Superego is the moral consciousness that drives in the person's mind more often internalized by culture and our parents. Ego is the real concept that has a neutral state between the aforesaid two traits.

Another important accept of Sigmund Freud's psychoanalytical theory is the concept of sublimation. Sublimation is a defense mechanism—an unconscious psychological defense that reduces the anxiety that may result from unacceptable urges or harmful stimuli[5]. A simple technique to convert someone's harmful stimuli to a useful and productive one for society. Sublimation is one way that the ego reduces the anxiety that can be created by unacceptable urges or feelings. Sublimation works by channeling negative and unacceptable impulses into behaviors that are positive and socially acceptable. [6]Hannibal also had this defense mechanism. He was a talented forensic doctor and also a psychiatric doctor before he was caught for his murders.

Projection is a psychological defense mechanism proposed by Anna Freud in which an individual attributes unwanted thoughts, feelings, and motives onto another person. [7]A similar thing has happened in the case of a murderer named William Coyne, who escaped prison in 1943. He was highly influenced by the character of Hannibal Lecter and started practicing more murders and cannibalism. Even though Hannibal didn't have any personal or intentional influence on people, the facts and stories spread about him influenced people, especially with weaker minds and with those people who have that inflicting tendency of hurting others and consider it as satisfying.

From all the discussions made concerning the cases of Amarjeet Sada and Hannibal Lecter, one of the most driven facts is that a child's mental state is most vulnerable. Their family and demographic background can bring greater impacts in their life. Being economically poor doesn't mean someone should lose their sanity. A peaceful and amicable atmosphere is the most essential requirement for every child.

When parents indulge in certain illegal ways, like thefts, due to unemployment, seduction, abuse, drugs, and even illegitimacy can do a great infliction in their lives. A sense of insecurity, guilt, and shame a child feels on behalf of their parents, may encourage them to lead a moral life. But in most cases that may not happen. The taunts and being judged by the ill behavior of their parents, most of the children get prevented to lead a decent life even if they wish for it.

Speaking about serial killings, the cases of Amarjeet Sada and Hannibal Lecter are not the only terrifying murders to be spoken about. There are many cults situated in many parts of the world. The basic understanding of what a cult is a deviant nature in itself. Staying outside the boundaries of the rules and regulations of society and building up their community; driving people to believe against the judicial system and law and order of a country; moreover igniting and encouraging to commit more and more crimes by giving the justification of moral values and the beliefs which are set up according to their conveniences.

Matamoros Human sacrificing cult was one among them. There are many such cults formulated. Those can be on the grounds of religions, sexuality, black magic, and much more. Each member of a cult has become a part of it because of their insecurities or their urges to do something different; thus simplifying the task of such cult leaders as they know how to toy with their feeling and weaknesses.

Serial killers like Jack the Ripper and HH Holmes had a different pattern of killings. The common fact between them was that majority of their victims were women. While Jack the Ripper aimed at women who mostly did the prostitution work, Holmes had a castle named the Murder of Castle where his victims were lured in the name of employment and they were seduced and then killed.

Holmes had separate rooms in his hotel to torture his victims; further lead to their death and a basement, where their dead bodies are transferred and later burn them or find other methods of disposal. Being women as their main targets hint toward the hatred for them which can be psychological as well as due to some dark pasts.

The criminal behavior in someone can be treated with great patience and by being amiable with the. Society always disregards someone who had such dark and horrifying nature. Neglecting them is not going to help but it will only make them continue what they are and what were they committing.

Some Unfinished Business And Inquisitor's Fiction

In the previous section of this article, discussions were made on how a criminal can be driven to commit crimes and their underlying behavioral traits attached to it. It was also said that most criminals are not just arisen out of their psychological reasons. Major sections of individuals commit crimes due to the circumstances they were put in.

The Latin root cerno meaning I decide. I give judgment comes into action mostly done by such individuals.

When individuals are forced to be criminals, the only one to be blamed is our judicial system and law and order of our country. When justice isn't given to someone who deserves it, they find other ways to earn justice or they do by what means justice can be provided. So what could be the major reasons for the denial of justice? Has it got something to be done with the pendency and alarming increase of the criminal cases? Or is it because of the actions of sovereign power?

It can be all of those reasons for which justice can be denied. Every year, the rate of pending cases in India is rising alarmingly. The main reasons for this situation are the overburdened courts and the understaffed sovereign authority. Overburdened courts leave the number of pending cases high and understaffed police authority leads to an increase in the number of unsolved criminal cases.

Indian citizens know how their judicial system works. Being the most powerful and effective Judiciary in the world, India still stands high in the criminal cases and most importantly pendency of such cases. As mentioned earlier, the pendency of the crimes and unsolved matters is quite known to everyone.

This discourages the citizens to report any crime that happened. The thought of being pushed away by the police authority and being pending under the courts for years after repeated trials discourage a common man to file any case. Even after a case is filed, the cases are being transferred to the courts without adequate investigation over it.

Simple petty cases which can be solved by the police authorities themselves are being transferred to courts thus leaving the court in confusion whether to deal with the major cases or with the minor ones. But are these the only reasons for the pendency of criminal cases in India? No. Political power, in-house corruption, and influence from the big shots; the crimes done by or close-knit with crimes are mostly covered up when there is an involvement from them.

According to a news report dated 09th September 2020, around 4,452 elected representatives, including the former ones, are indulged and accused in criminal activities; mostly for the offenses like Prevention of Corruption Act 1988, Prevention of Money Laundering Act 2002, Arms Act 1959, Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, 1984, defamation under section 500 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), and cheating under section 420 of the IPC. [8]

The most interesting fact is that most of the cases framed against such representatives are not yet resolved and it's still pending in the respective High Courts and the Supreme Court as well. Leaders like Rajnath Singh, Amith Shah, Varun Gandhi are some of the prominent ones who were accused of several criminal cases. [9]

When political leaders are involved in crimes, it naturally creates a negative influence among the citizens as well. If their leaders are indulging in criminal activities and staying out without falling in the front of the eyes of the law, why can't a common man do! That's the thought most people have. They find loopholes, indulge in corruption, bribe the police authority and hide up the facts of the crimes done by them.

Perjury is defined in The Indian Penal Code, 1860 under Section 191 as Whoever, being legally bound by an oath or by an express provision of law to state the truth, or being bound by law to make a declaration upon any subject, makes any statement which is false, and which he either knows or be­lieves to be false or does not believe to be true, is said to give false evidence[10]. The punishment for the offense of Perjury is defined under section 193 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 as SEVEN YEARS of imprisonment.[11] Police perjury is one of the gravest mistakes which could be done.

It explains how a sovereign authority could stoop so low mainly under the influence of bribery and being lured to material subjects and positions. Silencing the officers by offering money, other material subjects, and higher position; after that ordering them to cook up new facts hiding the actual ones and frame an innocent for their crimes.

Right now in India, most of the cases are being manipulated in this manner; as a result of which innocent ones are being punished for no reason and the one who was being subjected to the crime facing injustice. Another manner to torture or frame an innocent is through police brutality, custodial deaths, and extra-judicial killings. Extra-judicial killings were bought into the picture to provide instant justice when some un-controllable situation arises.

Recently, people are being killed under the banner of extra-judicial killings, while in an actual sense; it's just an accomplishment of revenge saga. If any political leaders or the police themselves find a particular individual as a threat to their existence or maybe due to some other reasons, he'll be charged with some random false case and taken into custody; torturing them until it satisfies their rage or simply shooting them out giving the reasons for provocation.

Extra-judicial killings are now considered a badge of honor to most of the States. The Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Mr. Yogi Adithya Nath has openly advertised the culture of encounter and extra-judicial killings[12]. Such notions openly encourage the misuse of all the provisions and flexibility given to the law enforcers to carry out anything as per their needs and then forge them with false shreds of evidence.

Denial of justice to the ones who were subjected to crimes is unfortunate. Living their life to the fullest, by enjoying every aspect is their right. Freedom of expression, speech, life, education, health, all these are given to each one of them right away from their birth. Standing against someone when they try to exercise their right is unconstitutional. Back in 1988, a singer named Amar Singh Chamkila and his wife Amarjot was killed along with two members of their band by a group of unknown youth, claiming that their music and the lyrics associated were based on extra-marital affairs, coming of age, drinking, drug use, and the hot tempers of Punjabi men.

The group of unknown youth is still not identified. A movie named, Court by Chaitanya Tamhane, also portrays a life of a middle-aged protest singer who tries to point out the fatal conditions and a life revolving in insecurities and poverty. He was being continuously locked by the law enforcers claiming provocation to death through his songs.

All these instances point out one major problem. When someone tries to convey his ideas and express his opinions through different mediums, he'll be punished, either through fair or unfair means. This the clear picture of unconstitutionality. The concept of Fraternity, which is given in our Constitution, is at its peak of extinction.

Justice is not a contemporary notion that came into existence of legal theories. Philosophically and legally, justice means fairness. What is fair for one may not be fair for the other person. The statue of Lady Justice with blindfolded eyes, beam balance, and a sword indicate the moral force in the judicial system; representing that everyone irrespective of their respect and position, are equal in the eyes of law. The current scenario clearly states that this idea of justice is hardly seen in society.

Indian society and culture are in a deteriorating condition. Its high time that everyone has to be educated on what their rights are and have to treat everyone equally irrespective of caste, creed, education, and mental health. Fraternity should be restored and peace should fly all over.

End-Notes:

1. https://www.ideablawg.ca/blog/2011/12/29/lets-talk-about-the-word-crime.html (last visited 27th April, 2021).
2. Quinney, Richard. "Is Criminal Behaviour Deviant Behaviour?" The British Journal of Criminology 5, no. 2 (1965): 132-42. Accessed May 13, 2021. http://www.jstor.org/stable/23634650
3. https://hannibal.fandom.com/wiki/Hannibal_Lecter#Adoption_and_Revenge (last visited 27th April, 2021).
4. https://www.simplypsychology.org/defense-mechanisms.html#:~:text=Repression%20is%20an%20unconscious%20defense,of%20guilt%20from%20the%20superego. (last visited 29th April, 2021).
5. https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-sublimation-in-psychology-4172222 (last visited 29th April, 2021).
6. Id at 5
7. Id at 4
8. https://thewire.in/law/sitting-mlas-mps-criminal-cases-data-supreme-court-criminalisation-politics (last visited 18th May, 2021).
9. https://www.business-standard.com/article/politics/india-s-top-10-tainted-netas-and-more-113100100609_1.html (last visited 18th May, 2021).
10. Indian Penal Code, 1860 S No. 191, Acts of Parliament, 1860 (India)
11. Indian Penal Code, 1860 S No. 193, Acts of Parliament, 1860 (India)
12. https://www.livelaw.in/top-stories/supreme-court-chitrakoot-jail-case-cbi-nia-uttar-pradesh-encounter-174196 (last visited 19th May, 2021).