New Delhi, Jan 14 (UNI) The Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed the curative petitions of two death row convicts -- Mukesh Singh, 30 and Vinay Kumar Sharma, 24-- in the 2012 Nirbhaya gang rape-and-murder case that had shaken the conscience of society and led to an overhaul of anti-rape laws of the nation's patriarchal institutions.
Brutally gang-raped in a moving bus in south Delhi on a cold December night, the 23-year-old physiotherapy student had died in a Singapore hospital days later.
'Applications for stay of execution of death warrants are also rejected," ruled a five-judge bench, headed by Justice N V Ramana.
The bench affirmed,"The applications for oral hearing are rejected.We have gone through the curative petitions and relevant documents. In our opinion, no case is made out within the parameters indicated in the decision of this court in Rupa Ashok Hurra vs Ashok Hurra (whether an aggrieved person is entitled to any relief against the final judgement/order of the Supreme Court, after dismissal of a review petition). Hence, the curative petitions are dismissed."
As per a source in apex court registry, the pleas were heard in chamber at 1.45pm for 10-15 minutes.
The other two death row convicts -- Akshay Kumar Singh, 27 and Pawan Gupta, 23,-- are yet to file curative pleas and a mercy petition before the President of India else, they both will also be executed on January 22, at 7am in the Capital's high-security Tihar jail.
UNI XC RP1616