SC Dismisses Petition For Execution Of Nirbhaya Convicts Within Two Weeks

The Supreme Court, on Thursday, refused to entertain a petition demanding execution of the convicts in the 2012 Delhi gang-rape case, within two weeks.

The petition was dismissed by a bench comprising Justice MB Lokur and Justice Deepak Gupta.

It was in September, 2013, that the Additional Sessions Judge, Saket District Court Complex had found the accused in the case guilty under inter alia sections 365-366, 376(2)(g), 377, 302 and 307 of the IPC, read with its section 120B. It had ordered them to be hanged till death.

This verdict was upheld by the Delhi High Court in March, 2014 and thereafter, by the Supreme Court. Review petitions filed by the death row convicts were also dismissed.

The court had now been approached by Delhi based Advocate Alakh Alok Srivastava, who had not just demanded “immediate execution” of the convicts in the case, but had also sought laying down of strict timelines for “speedy execution” of death row convicts in such cases.

The petitioner had asserted that the primary reason for the alarming increase in sexual offences is the delay in execution of death penalties and dispensation of justice. Pointing out that more than four months have passed since the review petition filed by the convicts had been dismissed, he had contended,

“Such delay in execution of Death Penalty, in the considered view of the Petitioner, is acting as a bad precedent and not able to act as a deterrent to the Rapists resulting into increasing incidents of horrific offences of Rapes being reported on daily basis in our country.”

He had therefore submitted that speedy execution of death penalties would act as a deterrent and had finally prayed,

“Thus, the instant PIL by way of Writ Petition has been preferred by the humble Petitioner, inter-alia, seeking a direction to the Respondents to immediately execute the punishment of Death Penalty awarded to the abovenamed accused persons in “Nirbhaya Gang Rape Case”, at the earliest, and maximum within two (2) weeks from the date of first hearing of the instant petition.The humble Petitioner further prays for strict timelines for speedy execution of Death Row convicts in all Rape and/ or Rape-cum-Murder cases where Death Penalty has been awarded by the Court.”