President rejects mercy plea of Nirbhaya convict Pawan; rapists exhaust all legal remedies

President Ram Nath Kovind has rejected the mercy petition of Nirbhaya convict Pawan Gupta on Wednesday. Earlier, the Supreme Court had rejected his curative plea on Monday, after which his counsel AP Singh filed the mercy petition. As per reports, the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Delhi government recommended the rejection of his mercy plea. Currently, the curative and mercy petitions of all 4 convicts have been dismissed. 

On Monday, the Patiala House Court deferred the execution of all the 4 rapists in the Nirbhaya rape and murder case until further orders. In the order, Additional Sessions Judge Dharmender Rana cited Pawan’s pending mercy plea as one of the reasons for putting off the hanging. Moreover, he highlighted the Delhi Prison Rules that mandate a buffer period of 14 days between the receipt of the communication of the rejection of the mercy petition and the day of execution.  

Read: 'People Losing Faith In Judiciary': Asha Devi After Execution Of Convicts Deferred Again

What is the Nirbhaya rape and murder case?  

A 23-year-old paramedic student Nirbhaya was gang-raped inside a running bus by six persons on December 16, 2012, in Delhi. The victim was severely assaulted and thrown out on the road along with her male friend and succumbed to injuries a few days later. Out of the six convicts, one reportedly committed suicide in prison, while another, a juvenile, served maximum punishment of three years in a reform home and was set free in 2015. The remaining four rapists were convicted and handed the death penalty by a trial court in 2013, confirmed by the Delhi High Court in March 2014. The Supreme Court upheld the Delhi High Court's verdict in 2017. 

Read: Nirbhaya Case: HC Declines To Entertain Plea Seeking Direction To NHRC To Assess Health Of Convicts

'They are misusing the law' 

After the Patiala House Court deferred the execution of the death warrants, Nirbhaya's mother Asha Devi expressed her anguish. She alleged that the convicts were misusing the law. Furthermore, she added that the repeated postponing of the hanging showcased the failure of the system. 

Asha Devi remarked, "They are misusing the law and government should look into it, how many times the court will postpone its own decision? The way the execution of the convicts is getting delayed, it is making an impact on society and people now are  losing hope in the judiciary." She added, "Why is the court taking so much time to execute its own order to hang the convicts? Repeated postponing of the execution shows the failure of our system. Our entire system supports criminals."

Read: Nirbhaya's Rapists Continue To Find Loopholes In The Legal Process: Priyanka Chaturvedi

Read: 'How Long Will Nirbhaya's Family Bear Drama Of This Courtroom?': Sirsa Slams Delay Tactics