The four convicts Mukesh (31), Pawan Gupta (24), Vinay Sharma (25) and Akshay Kumar Singh (33) were hanged at 5.30 am (Express photo)
December 16 gangrape hanging: The convicts of the December 16, 2012 gangrape-murder case were hanged to death Friday, bringing to a close a keenly watched case that had shocked the nation. They were sentenced to death for the rape and brutal assault of a 23-year-old woman in a moving bus in the national capital on December 16, 2012. Delhi Prisons DG Sandeep Goel confirmed Mukesh (31), Pawan Gupta (24), Vinay Sharma (25) and Akshay Kumar Singh (33) were executed at 5.30 am.
Ahead of the scheduled hangings, the convicts had approached a lower court, Delhi High Court and Supreme Court seeking review of the case.
“Justice has prevailed,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said hours after the hanging. “It is of utmost importance to ensure dignity and safety of women. Our Nari Shakti has excelled in every field. Together, we have to build a nation where the focus is on women empowerment, where there is emphasis on equality and opportunity,” he added.
The last hanging in the country was that of Yakub Memon, who was convicted in the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts case. Memon was hanged on July 30, 2015
Today is a day to reflect whether some people convicted for capital punishment should be allowed to manipulate the system to delay it for seven years, Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad says, after the Delhi gangrape convicts are hanged. He said the judiciary, government and civil society should reflect on the same.
“Justice has prevailed,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said hours after the hanging. “It is of utmost importance to ensure dignity and safety of women. Our Nari Shakti has excelled in every field. Together, we have to build a nation where the focus is on women empowerment, where there is emphasis on equality and opportunity,” he added.
The Supreme Court has always said that the death sentence should be given rarely. While the central government has consistently maintained it would keep the death penalty in the statute books to act as a deterrent, and for those who are a threat to society, the Supreme Court too has upheld the constitutional validity of capital punishment in “rarest of rare” cases. Read our explainer here.
An official who investigated the Delhi gangrape case, has spoken to news agency PTI. Pramod Singh Kushwaha, then the additional DCP (South) and who headed the investigation team, said, "(This) will act as a deterrent to other rapists." He is now the DCP of the special cell.
In an opinion column in The Indian Express in January this year, Vikram Patel, the Pershing Square Professor of Global Health, Harvard Medical School, writes: I am not being an apologist for these young men. They committed an unforgivably horrible crime and they deserve to be punished (though I am resolutely opposed to the idea of capital punishment). But, to return to the question of whether these young men were “created” as “monsters”, I beg to differ: None of them were born evil. If god does hang his head in shame, it is because we, as a society, fail our children so egregiously. No one is born evil.
It has been more than six years since the rape and brutal assault of a 23-year-old in the national capital. What led to the delay in the hanging of the convicts? A trial court may pronounce the death sentence only in the “rarest of the rare” cases — and such a sentence is automatically referred to the High Court for confirmation. A warrant of execution may only be issued once the sentence has been confirmed by the High Court. The convict then has the option of approaching the Supreme Court against the High Court’s decision. After the Supreme Court’s decision, the convict may file a review petition, and a separate curative petition before the Supreme Court. Both are standard legal processes, meant to rectify egregious errors in judgments.
On the day the convicts of the December 16, 2012 gangrape were hanged, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has vowed to ensure similar incidents do not take place in the national capital. He called for a collective resolution by the police, courts, states and central government to ensure this does not happen "to any daughter" again.
Following a late-night HC order, the counsel of three of the four convicts, advocate AP Singh, approached the Supreme Court registrar seeking stay on the execution. The top court, however, dismissed the plea. "We are not inclined. So far as juvenility is concerned, we already heard it. Other grounds, you raised it in other matters. Allow us to pass order," Justice Banumathi said. Read what happened in the Supreme Court in this Twitter thread:<
A day before the scheduled hanging, three of the four convicts had appealed against a trial court judgment, which declined to stay the execution. However, during the late-night hearing, the Delhi High Court held that the grounds raised by the counsel of the convicts, including that one of them is a juvenile, had already been dealt with by courts. A bench of Justice Manmohan and Justice Sanjeev Narula observed that the convicts’ pending pleas in various courts and fora as a ground to stay execution was untenable in law. Read our report on the Delhi HC hearing.
Here is a timeline of events since the December 16, 2012 incident till the convicts were hanged this morning. Click here to read more.
"Today's day is dedicated to the women and children of our country. I would like to thank a lot of people, the Judiciary and the President. The convicts' tactics to delay the hanging did not work finally. The whole country was ashamed by the incident in 2012. By hanging the culprits, the Judiciary has made it clear that the guilty will not be spared," Asha Devi, the victim's mother, told reporters.
The bodies of the four convicts, who were hanged early this morning, will be sent to Delhi’s Deen Dayal Upadhyay (DDU) Hospital for the post-mortem examination, after which they would be handed over to the families.
Security in place outside Tihar jail as crowd continues to gather on Friday morning. (Express photo/Praveen Khanna)
Showing the victory sign outside Tihar Jail, the father of the 2012 Delhi gangrape victim told ANI, "Today is our victory and it happened because of the media, society and Delhi Police. You can understand what is inside my heart through my smile".
On December 16, 2012, a 23-year-old physiotherapy student was raped and assaulted by six men on a moving bus in the national capital, and left to die. The incident had shaken the conscience of the nation, and led to nationwide protests demanding women safety. The woman died at a hospital in Singapore 13 days later. Of the six, one was a juvenile at the time of the incident and was tried by the Juvenile Justice Board and served the maximum sentence of three years in a remand home. Another, Ram Singh, allegedly committed suicide inside Tihar Jail in 2013.
The crowd outside Tihar Jail in New Delhi on Friday. (Express photo/Praveen Khanna)
After the hanging of the convicts, the victim's mother said, "I am proud of my daughter. I couldn't save her and that's a regret I'll always have. Had she been alive today, I would have been known as a doctor's mother. Justice was finally delivered. I thank the Judiciary, our President and our governments. If such a crime happens to a woman or a girl in your family, then you should first extend support to the woman. We will continue fighting for the daughters of India."
"It's a historic day. The victim got justice after over seven years, her soul must have found peace today. The country has given a strong message to rapists that if you commit this crime you will be hanged. I salute the efforts of the victim's parents. They fought till the very end to ensure that the culprits are punished," DCW chief Swati Maliwal said in a video. She added, "I would like to ask the government how many such cases will it take for it to change the system? Why can't all the cases be dealt with in a limited time frame? All those indulging in such heinous crimes should be hanged. What are the steps being taken to create such laws in the country? I, myself, had protested against this and have done a lot for this cause just to ensure the system improves and the guilty are hanged within six months."
Security outside Tihar Jail in New Delhi on Friday. (Express photo/Praveen Khanna)
Taking to Twitter, Delhi Commission for Women chief Swati Maliwal said, "The December 16 gangrape victim got justice after seven years. Her mother has struggled a lot to get justice for her daughter. The entire country had hit the streets to seek the same. This is the victory of the entire nation. We need stringent laws in our country. I believe there will be a change which will surely come."
"Doctor has examined all four convicts (of 2012 Delhi gangrape case) and declared them dead," Delhi Prisons DG Sandeep Goel said.
On the hanging of the convicts, National Commission for Women (NCW) chairperson Rekha Sharma told ANI, "An example has been set today but it could have been done earlier. Now, people know that they will be punished, you may extend the date but you will get punished."
Here is a brief profile of the four convicts hanged to death for the gangrape and murder of a woman on December 16, 2012. Akshay Kumar Singh was anative of Aurangabad, Bihar’s Naxal-hit district, while Mukesh Singh lived in Ravi Dass slum area in New Delhi. Pawan Gupta was a fruitseller at the time of the crime, and Vinay Sharma a gym instructor.
The four convicts — Mukesh (31), Pawan Gupta (24), Vinay Sharma (25) and Akshay Kumar Singh (33) — of December 16, 2012 gangrape and murder case were hanged at Delhi’s Tihar Jail at 5.30 am Friday. The execution was held at the crack of dawn, hours after the Supreme Court, Delhi High Court and lower court refused to stay the execution. Here is a timeline since the incident took place on December 16, 2012.
Here is a video of Asha Devi, the mother of the victim, speaking to the media after the four convicts in the case were hanged at Tihar jail in New Delhi.
Asha Devi, the mother of the gangrape victim, thanks the judiciary and government after the four convicts are hanged. "Finally they have been hanged, it was a long struggle. Today, we got justice, this day is dedicated to the daughters of the country. I thank the judiciary and government," she tells ANI.
The four convicts of the December 16, 2012 gangrape-murder case have been hanged at Tihar jail, amid high security.
Here's a video from outside Tihar jail, taken by our photojournalist Praveen Khanna.
The four convicts have been brought to the place were they will be hanged, Tihar jail officials tell news agency ANI. They are schedule to hang in a few minutes.
"Medical of all four death row convicts completed, all are fit and fine. Jail to be under lock-down till the process of hanging is completed," Tihar jail officials told news agency ANI.
Hours before the execution of the four death row convicts in the December 16, 2012, gangrape-murder case, Tihar Jail officials tested the hanging equipment by carrying out dummy executions. The convicts — Mukesh Singh (32), Pawan Gupta (25), Vinay Sharma (26) and Akshay Kumar Singh (31) — will be hanged at 5.30 am on Friday inside Jail No 4 at Tihar. Click here to know more.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta on the verdict: “Our judicial system and the executive government has ensured justice for all daughters of the country. This example will be a strong and imperishable deterrent."
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta on the verdict: “Our judicial system and the executive government has ensured justice for all daughters of the country. This example will be a strong and imperishable deterrent."
"Please allow family members of Pawan Gupta and Akshay Singh to meet them for 5-10 minutes before hanging," the convict's lawyer requested the apex court. However, the court citing the jail manual denied the request.
Supreme Court dismisses the petition of death row convict Pawan Gupta against rejection of his second mercy plea by the President.
"Petitioner is not right in contending that the plea of juvenility has not been finally considered by the courts. It was duly considered and rejected by the courts," says SC
"One convict of these four may not have been party to a premeditated crime. He may have committed rape but may not have been party to a conspiracy to murder. He may have only been bullied by others who were senior to him," Pawan Gupta's counsel argues in court.
"We are not inclined. So far as juvenility is concerned, we already heard it. Other grounds, you raised it in other matters. Allow us to pass order," Justice Banumathi said at the hearing.
At the hearing, Pawan Gupta's counsel claims that one of his petition for remission of the sentence is pending before the Lieutenant Governor. "Why jail authorities not waiting for decision or Lieutenant Governor?" he says. All the four convicts are scheduled to be hanged today at 5.30 am.
Death row convict Pawan Gupta claims juvenility in SC and assails award of death sentence in the Nirbhaya case. In response, Justice Bhushan says that all these arguments have been raised various times. "How are they relevant today," Justice Bhushan says.
At the hearing, Justice Bhushan says: "You are asking us to review the judgment. Interest of justice does not mean you can reopen whenever you want. This ground cannot be a ground for challenging the President rejecting your second mercy petition."
Supreme Court begins hearing in the petition of death row convict Pawan Gupta against the rejection of his second mercy plea by the President Ram Nath Kovind. A bench of Justices R Banumathi, Ashok Bhushan and AS Bopanna are hearing the plea.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta arrives at Supreme Court. SC will shortly hear the petition filed by death row convict Pawan Gupta against the rejection of his mercy plea by President Ram Nath Kovind.
The Supreme Court will hear at 2.30 am plea of death row convict Pawan Gupta against the rejection of his mercy plea by President. A bench headed by Justice R Banumathi will hear the matter.
The counsel for three of the four death-row convicts, advocate A P Singh, says that he will appeal in Supreme Court against Delhi HC order rejecting their pleas seeking a stay on their execution at 5:30 am.
The four death-row convicts in December 16 gangrape-murder case to be hanged Friday morning at 5:30 am. Delhi HC upholds the trial court order rejecting convicts application seeking a stay on their execution
Delhi HC annoyed over the manner in which the lawyer for convicts is addressing the bench. Observes: 'We have no problem, carry on arguing if you want to. We will speak through our judgement.'
Delhi HC asks the counsel for the convicts: 'Are you trying to reopen SC judgement? You cannot argue on merits now after death warrant is against you for tomorrow morning.'
Standing Counsel (Criminal) Rahul Mehra, appearing for the Delhi government and Tihar jail authorities, submits that all points being raised by the convicts, including juvenility and also various petitions pending before different courts, have been dealt by the courts till the top court.
Delhi HC says someone 'is playing with the system'. Court says 'there appears to be some conspiracy as there was a two-and-a-half-year delay in filing mercy pleas. HC says, “Without making a case of stay, it (hanging) cannot be stayed. President of India has applied his mind while deciding mercy pleas. The Supreme Courts judges also gave their opinion”.
Convicts' counsel A P Singh tells Delhi HC they be given at least one or two days to make their case. “Till now, you have not raised a single legal ground on the basis of which we can differ the hanging,” Justice Manmohan of Delhi HC says.
Delhi HC urges the counsel for the convicts to make a legal submission before it, or else their petition will become infructuous by 5:30 am tomorrow. Delhi HC says, “We are very close to the time when your clients will meet God. Says 'you may have a point, but you may lose'. Counsel had earlier said they couldn't file the papers as no photocopy machines were working due to the coronavirus outbreak
HC expresses anguish over convicts counsel AP Singh's submission over cases pending before different courts and fora. Mentions divorce plea by convict Akshay Singh, says it does not hold good ground to stay his execution.
Delhi HC judge observes that the judgement of the trial court, by which four of them were awarded death penalty, has attained finality by the apex court and 'we cannot review the same'.
Delhi High Court expresses displeasure over delay in filing mercy pleas by the convicts in the case, once the Supreme Court had upheld their conviction and death sentence in May 2017.