Introducing Saudi Arabia – a country in the Middle East where “tu jaanta nahi mera baap kaun hain” means nothing. The country diligently follows its claim of treating none above law, and it is this that led to the execution of the royal Prince Turki bin Saud al-Kabir.
The Case
About three years ago, in the al-Thumama region, on the outskirts of Riyadh, Prince Turki bin Saud al-Kabir was found guilty of killing a fellow citizen in a riot. Demands were made by the victim’s family for the execution of the Prince, and were met by the General Court.
Attempts were made to provide the victim’s family with financial compensation, and convincing them to not demand the death sentence; however, all attempts were in vain. The family refused to accept the ‘blood money’ and strongly stood by its demand for the death penalty.
Later, the verdict was upheld by the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court, and a royal decree was declared to carry out the execution.
A Surprise?
Apparently NOT.
This is not the first time when the monarchy of Saudi Arabia has declared the execution of a prince belonging to the royal family, even though it’s a first in four decades. The royal family claims to have never seen itself above law and has not only been prepared for the most extreme punishments for a wrong-doing but has also accepted it gracefully.
Although, the objective of the execution seems a little multi-faceted than just providing justice to victim’s family. A common perspective to this is calling it a political stunt to restore the faith of the people in their king, with an assurance that the people to have powers and their voices do not fall on deaf ears. This can be seen as quite a valid opinion, considering the series of wrong-doings the royals have committed in the past, and have been forgiven. Such an execution costs little to the king but guarantees a lot in return.
When viewed from the view of a royal family (that apparently has never seen itself above law), it is a lesson for the younger generations that their name and family will be of no use when one messes with the law (something India really needs to learn).
If the same incident were to happen in India, it can be guaranteed that ‘justice’ would be in favour of those with a larger bank balance. However, execution is an extreme step and seems to work well for Saudi Arabia. It can be said that Saudi Arabia isn’t quite changing for good, but what’s important is that the country does not hesitate in punishing their ‘royals’ and that’s something countries like India need to learn.
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http://edtimes.in/2014/10/execution-case-number-967-wait/
