Nirbhaya case: SC junks curative pleas by 2 convicts

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected curative petition by two Nirbhaya case death row convicts — Vinay Sharma and Mukesh — which exhausted all their remedies for any  relief from the top court.

Rejecting the curative petition, a five judge bench comprising Justice N.V.Ramana, Justice Arun Mishra, Justice Rohinton Fali Nariman, Justice R. Banumathi and Justice Ashok Bhushan in their order said that no case is made for the reconsideration of the May 5, 2017 verdict upholding the death sentence of Vinay and Mukesh along with two others.

“In our opinion, no case is made out within the parameters indicated in the decision of this Court in Rupa Ashok Hurra (case) .... Hence, the Curative Petitions are dismissed”, said the order.

Having rejected the curative petition by Vinay Sharma and Mukesh, the five-judge bench also rejected the plea for an open court hearing of the curative petition and the stay of the execution of death sentence.  

As per the death warrant issued by a Delhi court, all the four convicts in the 2012 gang-rape and murder case — Vinay Sharma, Mukesh, Pawan Gupta and Akshay Kumar Singh — are likely to be hanged on January 22 at 7 am in Delhi’s Tihar Jail.

Having exhausted all the legal options for relief from top court, both Vinay and Mukesh can now file a mercy petition before the President.

A bench comprising then Justice Dipak Misra, (who later became CJI and has since retired) Justice R. Banumathi and Justice Ashok Bhushan had on May 5, 2017, upheld the death sentence of the four convicts.

The review petition of Mukesh, and Vinay Sharma were rejected on July 9,  2018.

Vinay Sharma had moved the curative petition on January 8, 2020, two days after a Delhi Court had issued the death warrants for all the four convicts in the 2012 gang-rape and murder case. The four, as per the death warrant, will be hanged on January 22 at 7 am in Delhi’s Tihar Jail.

Vinay Sharma had moved the curative petition on January 8, 2020, two days after a Delhi Court had issued the death warrants for all the four convicts in the 2012 gang-rape and murder case. Vinay Sharma in his curative petition had said that his socio-economic circumstances, number of family dependants including ailing parents, good conduct in jail and probability of reformation were not considered.

The petition had said that the judgment upholding the death sentence was  “bad in law as subsequent judgments of apex court have definitely changed the law on death sentence in India allowing several convicts similarly placed as him to have their death sentence commuted to life.”