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Chief Justice of India, S A Bobde, on Tuesday, recused himself from hearing the plea of a convict on the death row in the Nirbhaya gangrape and murder case.
A bench, headed by CJI Bobde, was to hear the review plea filed by Akshay Kumar Singh, who through his lawyer A.P. Singh, sought clemency, citing the depleting air quality and water pollution in the city, which has negatively impacted the life span of the citizens.
The Supreme Court said another appropriate bench will take up the convict's review plea on Wednesday.
The CJI said one of his relatives had earlier appeared on behalf of the victim's mother in the case and observed that it would be appropriate that some other bench hear the review plea.
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Advocate A P Singh, appearing for Akshay, started his submission saying that the case in hand has suffered political and media pressure and grave injustice has been done to the convict.
The top court had already dismissed the review pleas of three other convicts also on death row. They are Mukesh (30), Pawan Gupta (23) and Vinay Sharma (24). The court found no merit in conducting the review and upheld the capital punishment given by the trial court and confirmed by the Delhi High Court in the case.
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Ram Singh, another accused in the case, allegedly committed suicide in the jail. A juvenile accused, convicted by a juvenile justice board, was released from a reformation home after serving a three-year term.
The 23-year-old paramedic student was gang-raped and brutally assaulted on the intervening night of December 16-17, 2012 inside a moving bus. Later, she was thrown at an isolated place by the accused. The victim died on December 29, 2012 at Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore.
The convicts, except Akshay, can avail legal remedy by filing curative pleas in the top court against their conviction and death penalty. After exhausting the legal channel, the convicts can send mercy plea to the President. If the President dismisses the mercy pleas of the accused, then the authorities would need death warrants from a local court to carry out executions.
(With PTI Inputs)
