Nirbhaya hangings: MHA moves HC challenging stay

Nirbhaya rape and murder case

New Delhi: The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) along with Tihar Jail authorities on Saturday moved the Delhi High Court challenging the trial court order putting a stay on the death warrants issued against the four death row convicts in the Nirbhaya gang rape and murder case.

The MHA plea states that the said four convicts by filing their respective review petition or curative or mercy petition one after the other and that too at such a belated stage - that is after the issuance of the death warrants - are in fact being permitted to play with the majesty of law leading to unnecessarily prolonging the execution and thereby taking the judicial process for a ride. "Convicts have deliberately chosen to file their review/curative/mercy petition at a much belated stage beyond the statutory period available to them with the sole objective to delay the execution of the death warrants," the plea said.

A single judge bench of Justice Suresh Kumar will hear the matter later on Saturday. A Delhi court had on Friday stayed for an indefinite period, the death warrants issued against the four death row convicts - Akshay Singh, Pawan Gupta, Mukesh Kumar and Vinay Sharma. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta on Saturday informed the Delhi High Court that the four death row convicts in the Nirbhaya gang rape and murder case "can be hanged separately".

Mehta while arguing before Justice Suresh Kumar Kait said, "Once a person is aware that his fate is death penalty, any delay in execution is dehumanising. They should be executed immediately. Mukesh has no reason to wait for his execution. Pawan has chosen to not file curative or mercy plea. "They are not only abusing the process of law, they are creating circumstances that will water down the guidelines," Mehta added."

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