Supreme Court issues notice in application seeking guidelines for speedy execution of death row convicts

In the backdrop of litigation filed by the Nirbhaya case convicts before various courts, the Supreme Court today issued notice in an application filed by the Centre seeking fixed timelines for death row convicts to file curative and mercy petitions..When the matter came up before the Bench of Chief Justice of India SA Bobde and Justices BR Gavai and Surya Kant, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta submitted that vide the Shatrughan Chauhan v. Union of India judgment, the Supreme Court had laid down certain guidelines earmarking unassailable rights of death row convicts.He argued that there was also a need for framing additional guidelines, which would guarantee speedy justice for victims.."The guidelines in Shatrughan Chauhan are accused-centric. We need guidelines which are victim and society centric.”Solicitor General Tushar Mehta.Mehta further contended that in light of heinous offences committed on victims, it is imperative that the execution of the sentence awarded to the accused is not prolonged. He said,“This shall be beneficial to the society as whole.”The SG also claimed claimed that prolonging the executions has a de-humanising effect on the convicts and co-convicts as well..In light of the above, Mehta argued that additional guidelines must lay down the following:1) Death row convicts may only be permitted to file a curative petition within a stipulated time as mandated by the court after rejection of the review;2) Death row convicts may only be allowed to file a mercy petition within a period of seven days after death warrants are issued;3) All competent courts, state governments and prison authorities must be directed to execute the death sentence within seven days of issuance of death warrant, irrespective of the stage of the review/curative/ mercy petitions of co-convicts..CJI SA Bobde, while issuing notice in the application, also observed that the proceedings will be restricted to this purview and shall not have any bearing on the sentences of the convicts, which has already been decided in Shatrughan Chauhan.The Centre’s stand came in light of the pending executions of the death warrants of the four convicts in the 2012 Delhi gang rape case.The Court recently dismissed the curative petition filed by one of the death row convicts in the 2012 Nirbhaya gang-rape case, Akshay Kumar Singh.The four convicts are scheduled to be executed on February 1 at 6 AM.