Delhi court issues 3rd death warrant for Nirbhaya's rapists; hanging set for March 3

In yet another development in the 2012 rape case, the Patiala house court has issued a third death warrant on Monday. As per the warrant, the Nirbhaya rapists will be hanged on March 3. This comes after Patiala House Court heard the arguments of both the prosecutor and the counsels for rapists. 

Currently, SC has rejected all convicts review petition while the President has rejected three mercy pleas. The Supreme Court has rejected three convicts' curative petition, while one is pending. Previously, the Patiala House court had set an execution date on January 22 and later extended it to February 1.

Nirbhaya case: Patiala House Court reserves order on issuing death warrant of convicts

The arguments in Patiala House Court

The prosecutor listed all the possible legal remedies available to the convicts. He referred to the order of the Supreme Court that no petition pending before it has any bearing on the execution proceedings pending before the trial court. Mentioning that no petition of any convict was pending before the SC and the President of India, he also cited the Delhi High Court order that mandated the rapists to exhaust their legal remedies by February 12.

On the other hand, the counsel for convict Pawan revealed that a curative petition would be filed before the SC in the next few days. Moreover, AP Singh- the counsel for convict Akshay said that his parents had filed an incomplete mercy plea. Therefore, he stated that Akshay wanted to file an elaborate mercy plea.  

At this juncture, Vrinda Grover informed the court that Mukesh did not want her as the counsel. AP Singh added that his client Vinay was on a hunger strike since February 11 and was not in a mentally fit condition. The court directed the jail Superintendent to take care of the convict as per rules.  

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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. 

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