Nirbhaya Case: Convicts may not be hanged on January 22

The four death row convicts in the 2012 Nirbhaya gangrape-murder case will not be hanged on January 22 as announced before. The Delhi government has said that the execution must be postponed as a mercy petition by one of the convicts is still pending.

The counsel arguing on behalf of the Delhi government and MHA informed the court that according to the Tihar Prison Manual rules and previous Supreme Court orders there is an automatic stay on the execution of the death penalty due to a pending mercy petition.

The high court said there has been no application of mind and that the system is suffering from 'cancer'. The remarks were made while the court was declining to hear the plea by Mukesh - one of the convicts who challenged the death warrant.

As per prison rules, if death sentence has been awarded to more than one person in a particular case and if one of them moves a mercy plea, the execution of the others too has to be postponed till the plea is decided.

"Then your rule is bad if you cannot take action till all the co-convicts have moved a mercy plea. It seems there has been non-application of mind (while framing the rules). The system is suffering from cancer," the bench told Delhi government standing counsel (criminal) Rahul Mehra in response to his submission.