Nirbhaya's Mother Breaks Down, Says 'Hanging Being Postponed Deliberately'

Nirbhaya's mother Asha Devi on Friday accused BJP and AAP of playing politics over the death of her daughter and said the hanging of the convicts of 2012 gang-rape case was being postponed "deliberately".

"It has been seven years and we didn't get justice. The government can't see our pain. Both parties are playing politics over the girl's death. I think the hanging is deliberately been postponed," Asha Devi told ANI when asked about the war of words between BJP and AAP in the case.

"Till now, I never talked about politics, but now I want to say that those people who held protests on streets in 2012, today the same people are only playing with my daughter's death for political gains," she said.

On Thursday, BJP alleged that the AAP government is responsible for the delay in the hanging of Nirbhaya convicts. Later, Deputy Chief Minister and senior AAP leader Manish Sisodia hit back at BJP and said 'Give us Delhi Police and law-and-order responsibility for two days and we will hang Nirbhaya convicts'.

BJP leader and Union minister Prakash Javadekar said all the four convicts would have been hanged by now, had the AAP government acted quickly and served notices to them immediately after the Supreme Court rejected their appeal against death sentence in 2017.

Hitting back at the BJP, Deputy Chief Minister and AAP leader Manish Sisodia dared the Centre to handover Delhi's law and order to his government for two days, claiming it will hang the convicts in the 2012 gangrape and murder case .

"Javadekar ji police is under you (Centre), responsibility of law and order is under you, home ministry is under you, Tihar DG and administration is under you and you are blaming us. Please don't stoop so low on a sensitive issue. This a clear attempt to instigate the people," Sisodia said.

"If you are not able to handle law and order of Delhi, give us Delhi police and law and order responsibility for two days and we will hang Nirbhaya convicts," he added.

Commenting on Sisodia's remark, Asha Devi said: "It would be good if Sisodia had said 'give me Delhi Police, I will protect girls'."

The mother also urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ensure that the hanging of convicts take place on January 22.

The four death row convicts will not be hanged on January 22 as scheduled, with the Delhi government on Wednesday telling the high court that the execution has to be postponed in view of the pendency of a mercy petition by one of them.

The mercy plea was rejected by the president on Friday.

The four convicts -- Mukesh (32) Vinay Sharma (26), Akshay Kumar Singh (31) and Pawan Gupta (25) — were to be hanged on January 22 at 7 am in Tihar jail. A Delhi court had issued their death warrants on January 7.

(With agency inputs)