Delhi gang rape case verdict: Death sentence for four convicts
The death sentence is aimed at serving as a stern warning against crime and violence on Indian women which has been on the rise.
The sentence comes just days after the four men -- Mukesh Singh, Pawan Gupta, Vinay Sharma, and Akshay Thakur (aged between 19 and 28) were found guilty on all charges against them in the Delhi gang rape case.
Judge Yogesh Khanna, while delivering the sentence, said that the Indian justice system cannot “turn a blind eye” to such brutal crimes against women.
He described the case as “rarest of rare categories” and said it calls for the exemplary punishment of death, according to reports.
One of the convicts, Vinay Shama (20) brke down when the sentence was awarded and pleaded for pardon.
The defence lawyers are now looking to file an appeal at the Delhi High Court. According to reports, one of the lawyers said that he will wait for two months to see if the verdict acts as a deterrent against rape and that he will not appeal only if there are no cases registered in the next two months.
23-year-old student “Nirbhaya” was brutally gang-raped by the drunken men on Sunday, December 16 2012 in Munirka, South Delhi. The convicts attacked the woman and her friend, beat them, raped her and threw them both off a private bus on a high road.
The student died of multiple organ injuries in a hospital in Singapore a fortnight later. The brutal and callous incident ignited widespread outrage in India and the people demanded for the Indian laws to become stricter on sexual crimes and called for death penalties.
The death sentence awarded to the four convicts in the Delhi gang rape case has been welcomed by protesters, campaigners, women’s help groups, politicians and influential leaders.
The victim’s parents and two brothers were present at the court when the verdict was announced and Nirbhaya’s mother said she was relieved after hearing the verdict.
Earlier in August, a juvenile, Ram Singh, another suspect in the Delhi gang rape murder case was found guilty and given a three-year term in reform facility. And another suspect, the bus driver Ram Singh was found dead in Tihar jail.
