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A Delhi court on Monday, 7 January, issued a death warrant for the four convicts in the 2012 Nirbhaya gang rape and murder case. They will be hanged at 7 am in Tihar Jail on 22 January.
The court has given 14 days for the convicts to exercise their legal remedies.
Nirbhaya’s father, Badrinath Singh, said he was happy with the court's decision, adding that the verdict will “instill fear in people who commit such crimes.”
Meanwhile, Nirbhaya convicts' lawyer AP Singh said they will file a curative petition in the Supreme Court within a day or two.
"Five senior most judges of the SC will hear it. There has been pressure of media, public and political pressure in the case since the beginning. Unbiased probe could not take place," Singh said.
‘Why Has It Taken 7 Years to Punish Them?’
Delhi Commission for Women Chief Swati MaliwaI also hailed the apex court’s verdict and said, “It is a win for all the 'Nirbhayas' living in this country. I salute Nirbhaya's parents who fought for seven long years.”
However, Maliwal slammed the delay in the verdict. “Why has it taken seven years to punish these people? Why can’t this time period be reduced?” Maliwal questioned.
Congress leader Sushmita Dev reiterated Maliwal's remark. "If it can takes 7 years in an open and shut case like Nirbhaya's, then what happens in other cases where evidence is not clear? It calls for introspection of the political class and legal community to see where the problems are," Dev said.
The order was pronounced by Additional Sessions Judge Satish Kumar Arora.
The four death row convicts are Mukesh, Vinay Sharma, Akshay Singh and Pawan Gupta.
Meanwhile, a Tihar Jail official said arrangements have been made to execute all the four convicts together, according to ANI.
"We will seek the service of a hangman from Meerut," the jail official added.
‘It Is a Victory of Law’
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday welcomed the court’s verdict and expressed hope that this will set the right example for people misbehaving with women.
“I hope people who misbehave with women learn from this that they will not be spared,” Kejriwal said, according to PTI.
Talking to ANI, Kejriwal said a system to expedite the trial is necessary. “We need a system so that decisions in such cases don't take seven years. Such people should be punished within six months. Also, we need to make Delhi a safe city where such acts don't even occur,” Kejriwal said.
Delhi Deputy CM Manish Sisodia said, “The whole country had been waiting for this. It is a victory of law.”
Meanwhile, BJP leader and Union Minister Prakash Javadekar said justice has been delivered to the victim and that the verdict will empower women and strengthen people's faith in the judiciary.
The 23-year-old paramedic student, referred to as Nirbhaya, was gang raped and brutally assaulted on the intervening night of 16-17 December in 2012 inside a moving bus in south Delhi by six persons before being thrown out on the road.
She died on 29 December 2012 at Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore.
(With inputs from ANI & PTI.)
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