Mehmood, Sultan, Seror, Avner and Chen, Daniel L. (2023) Ramadan Fasting Increases Judicial Leniency in Judges from Pakistan and India. TSE Working Paper, n. 22-1393, Toulouse

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Abstract

We estimate the impact of the Ramadan fasting ritual on criminal sentencing decisions for Pakistan and India from half a century of daily data. We use random case assignment and exogenous variation in fasting intensity within Ramadan due to the rotating Islamic calendar and the geographical latitude of the district courts to document large effects of Ramadan fasting on decision-making. Our sample comprises roughly a half million judicial cases and 10,000 judges from Pakistan and India. Ritual intensity increases acquittal rates of Muslim judges, lowers their appeals and reversal rates, and does not come at the cost of increased recidivism or heightened outgroup bias. Overall, our results highlight that the Ramadan fasting ritual followed by a billion Muslims worldwide induces more lenient decisions that appear to be of higher quality.