Examining the Punishment Purposes of Defamation in Imami Jurisprudence

In jurisprudential literature, Defamation is performed with other punishments. Therefore, the purpose of the punishment of Defamation should be considered with the purpose of other punishments. The question of this article is what assumptions can be made about the purposes of the punishment of Defamation and the associated punishment? In response to the question that has been discussed regarding the fatwas of the jurists on the four crimes of fraud, beshrew, pander and false testimony by descriptive-analytical method, while recognizing the punishment of Defamation as complementary, assumptions of separation of Defamation’ purpose from punishment of the attendant and the complementarity of the purpose of the Defamation in relation to the punishment of the attendant is proposed. If Defamation has a separate purpose, it is the purpose of individual deterrence, general deterrence, or prevention of victimization, and the attendant punishment necessarily pursues one of the above three objectives without being similar to Defamation. If the purpose of Defamation is similar to attendant punishment, both punishments simultaneously pursue a single goal at different levels. However, if defamation is complementary punishment, two hypotheses can be proposed: some goals are complementary to others, and some punishments are complementary to others to a single goal. If Defamation has a separate purpose, it is the purpose of individual deterrence, general deterrence, or prevention of victimization, and the attendant punishment necessarily pursues one of the above three objectives without being similar to Defamation. If the purpose of Defamation is similar to attendant punishment, both punishments simultaneously pursue a single goal at different levels. However, if defamation is complementary punishment, two hypotheses can be proposed: some goals are complementary to others, and some punishments are complementary to others to a single goal.