Nirbhaya Case: CJI Bobde recuses himself, new SC bench to hear convict's plea on Dec 18

A new bench of the Supreme Court will be constituted to hear the review petition filed by Akshay Singh, one of the convicts in the Nirbhaya rape and murder case after the CJI recused himself from hearing the matter. The newly constituted bench will assemble at 10.30 am on Wednesday. Nirbhaya’s parents were present in the apex court at the time of the hearing. This development comes at a juncture when the Tihar jail has requested the services of two hangmen, giving rise to the speculation that Nirbhaya rapists could be hanged soon. 

Read: Nirbhaya Case: Protesters Outside Tihar Jail Seek Early Death Sentence For The Accused

Read: 7 Years Of Nirbhaya Case: 'Say No To Violence Against Women', Urges Mamata Banerjee

The Nirbhaya case

A 23-year-old paramedic student Nirbhaya was gang-raped inside a running bus by six persons on December 16 in 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 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 death sentence by a trial court in 2013, confirmed by the Delhi High Court in March 2014.

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The Supreme Court upheld the Delhi High Court's verdict in 2017. In July 2018, the SC rejected the review pleas filed by the three convicts for a re-examination of its 2017 judgment. The Tihar jail administration had issued a notice to the convicts on October 31 this year reminding them about the mercy petition being their last option after exhausting all other legal options. Thereafter, both the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Delhi government recommended rejection of the mercy plea after which it was forwarded to President Ram Nath Kovind. 

Read: Nirbhaya Case: Shooter Vartika Singh Offers To Be Hangwoman For Convicts, Writes To HMO