‘Taking Law For a Joy Ride’: MHA Moves HC Challenging Stay on Death Warrants of Nirbhaya Case Convicts

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre, said that all four convicts are taking the process of law for a joy ride.

New Delhi: In a development to 2012 Nirbhaya gangrape case, 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. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre, said that all four convicts are taking the process of law for a joy ride.

He added, “they (convicts) are acting in tandem and such a way that somehow this heinous crime goes unpunished.”

In the plea, MHA along with Tihar jail, mentions that the convicts by filing their review/curative/mercy petition, one after the other at such a belated stage, are being permitted to play with law leading to unnecessarily prolonging execution and taking 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 Delhi court had on Friday stayed for an indefinite period, the death warrants issued against the four death row convicts – Akshay, Pawan, Mukesh and Vinay.

Additional Sessions Judge Darmendra Rana in his order had said, “Without commenting upon the dilatory tactics adopted by the convicts, suffice it would be to state that seeking redressal of one’s grievances through procedure established by law was the hallmark of any civilised society. The courts of this country cannot afford to adversely discriminate any convict, including death row convicts in pursuit of his legal remedies, by turning a Nelson’s eye towards him.”

A 23-year-old woman was brutally gangraped and tortured on December 16, 2012, which later led to her death. All the six accused were arrested and charged with sexual assault and murder. One of the accused was a minor and appeared before a juvenile justice court, while another accused committed suicide in Tihar Jail.

(With agency inputs)