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India | Nirbhaya Convict Claims Sex Assault, Solitary In Jail Days Before Hanging

Mukesh Singh, Vinay Sharma, Akshay Singh and Pawan Gupta
Mukesh also claimed details like him being kept in solitary confinement and other procedural lapses had been ignored when his mercy petition was being considered.

New Delhi: One of the four Nirbhaya case convicts to be hanged on February 1 has challenged the rejection of his mercy request citing "non-application of mind" by the President of India. The Supreme Court will announce its decision on the convict's petition tomorrow.

Convict Mukesh Singh's lawyer argued before the Supreme Court today that all records were not sent to President Ram Nath Kovind, so his decision to reject mercy was "arbitrary and malafide".

The Supreme Court rejected his request to show documents to the President that he claimed would prove he was "beaten and sexually assaulted" in jail.

"You are playing with somebody's life. You have to apply your mind," said Mukesh's lawyer, Anjana Prakash, during the arguments.

"Do you mean the President has to look into every document and then decide," questioned Justice Ashok Bhushan.

"How can you say that these facts were not placed before his excellency the President? How can you say that there was non-application of mind by the President," the Supreme Court questioned.

Ms Prakash claimed Mukesh Singh was "repeatedly sexually abused in jail". She also claimed he was kept in solitary confinement even before his mercy petition was rejected and this was against prison rules.

Representing the police, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, said: "Sufferings in the prison can't be a ground for mercy. Mukesh was not kept in solitary confinement. The limited period Mukesh was kept in a separate single cell can't be equated with solitary confinement."

Mr Mehta also pointed out: "Sometimes, medical health and condition of death row convicts has deteriorated so much so that they cannot be given death penalty but in this case, the medical condition of this (Mukesh) convict, is fine."

Mukesh, Pawan Gupta, Vinay Kumar Sharma and Akshay Kumar are to hang on Saturday at 6 am. Chief Justice SA Bobde had on Monday asked that Mukesh's petition be listed "on top priority" because of the execution date.

Last-minute petitions by the convicts have been widely seen as desperate attempts to stall their hanging.

The government last week asked the Supreme Court for a change in guidelines in death row cases so convicts cannot keep delaying the sentence by exploiting legal options. 

The current rules are skewed towards convicts and allows them to "play with the law and delay execution," the centre said in its petition.

On December 16, 2012, a 23-year-old medical student was gang-raped and savagely assaulted on a moving bus in South Delhi. She died of her injuries a fortnight later in a Singapore hospital.

Source: ndtv.com, A Vaidyanathan, Deepshikha Ghosh, January 28, 2020


Supreme Court reserves verdict on Nirbhaya convict’s plea for Wednesday


In last-ditch bid, convict Mukesh Kumar argues President was not given all the relevant material to decide on his mercy petition

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court Tuesday reserved its verdict on a plea by one of the four death row convicts in the Nirbhaya gang-rape and murder case challenging the rejection of his mercy petition by the president.

A three-judge bench headed by Justice R Banumathi said it will pronounce the verdict on convict Mukesh Kumar Singh's plea on Wednesday. The death row convicts in the case are scheduled to be hanged on February 1.

President Ram Nath Kovind had rejected the mercy petition of Mukesh on January 17.

The Supreme Court questioned the convict as to how he can allege "non application of mind" by the president in rejecting his mercy petition.

The bench asked senior advocate Anjana Prakash, appearing for Mukesh Kumar Singh, as to how they can argue that all the facts of the case were not placed before the President when he dealt with the mercy plea.

"How can you say that these facts were not placed before his excellency the President? How can you say that there was non-application of mind by the President," the bench, also comprising justices Ashok Bhsuhan and A S Bopanna, asked the lawyer.

Solicitor-general Tushar Mehta told the bench that all the records, exhibits and the judgment in the case were placed before the president.

Singh’s lawyers argued that there were procedural lapses that led to the dismissal of his mercy plea by the President. They said that certain supervening circumstances, including solitary confinement and procedural lapses have been ignored while considering his mercy plea.

Pressing for carrying out the death penalty, solicitor-general Tushar Mehta sought dismissal of Mukesh’s plea and said being ill-treated in prison cannot be grounds for mercy to one who has committed a heinous crime.

Mehta told the bench that Mukesh Kumar Singh was not kept in solitary confinement as alleged.

Sourceasianage.com, PTI, January 28, 2020


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