Published On : Thu, Jul 30th, 2015

Yakub’s Plea: Late Night Hearing in SC, @ 5:00 am Dismissed

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yakub-memon-supreme-court-hearing-at-230-am-650_650x400_51438203100Nagpur: In yet another last ditch effort, lawyers for Yakub Memon, facing execution on Thursday morning, moved the Supreme Court seeking a stay of his hanging. When arguments began around 3.30 am, they told the three-judge Bench that Memon must get 14 days to challenge rejection of mercy plea by President which was dismissed at 5 am. clearing the deck for hanging as per scheduled. This is the same Bench that earlier rejected Menon’s plea.

For the first time ever, the top court was opened up in the middle of the night.

The case was being heard inside the Supreme Court in what is an unprecedented day for the Indian judiciary. His lawyers argued that the mercy plea junked by the President in 2014 was filed by Yakub’s brother and he had substantive right to file a fresh plea separately.

His counsel argued that no distinction can be drawn between rights of a death row convict in a terror case and those convicted for other crimes. Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi argued that repeated filing of mercy petitions is nothing but abuse of the process.

Attorney General says Yakub and family have been informed about rejection of mercy plea by President this evening. Attorney General tells SC idea is to delay the execution by 4-5 years on death row and then seek commutation alleging inordinate delay.

 

Live Update : Chronicle of Events as it happened 

  1. The fate of Yakub Abdul Razak Memon, the 1993 Mumbai serial bomb blasts convict, hangs in balance as his lawyers are arguing for a stay on his execution with the Chief Justice of India HL Dattu at the latter’s residence in New Delhi in a late night hearing.
  2. Memon is scheduled to be hanged at 7 AM at the Nagpur Central Jail after his mercy petition was rejected by President Pranab Mukherjee on Wednesday.
  3. The Supreme Court will hear the new petition at 2:30 AM. A new three-judge bench may be set up to hear the petition.
  4. Those meeting CJI HL Dattu seeking a stay on Yakub Memon’s death sentence include senior lawyers Prashant Bhushan, Vrinda Grover and Yakub’s counsel Raju Ramachandran.
  5. Chief Justice of India HL Dattu and other judges on the way to Supreme Court.
  6. People are protesting outside the Supreme Court against last minute hearing of Yakub Memon’s mercy plea.
  7. The Supreme Court begins hearing in plea filed by Yakub Memon’s lawyers.
  8. Senior lawyers Prashant Bhushan, Anand Grover and Nitya Ramakrishnan are appearing for Yakub Memon.
  9. Justices Amitav Roy, Dipak Misra and Prafulla Pant are hearing the plea. It is the same three-judge bench which turned Memon’s plea seeking a reconsideration of his death sentence.
  10. Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi also present in the court.
  11. Yakub Memon’s lawyer Anand Grover seeks 14-day stay on his execution. He says the mercy petition rejected by the Maharashtra Governor was filed by Yakub’s brother and the one rejected by President Pranab Mukherjee was filed by Yakub. He cites Shatrughan Chauhan judgement of 2014.
  12. Advocate Anand Grover demands 14-day time for Yakub Memon to meet his family, to make his will and to make peace with god.
  13. Unlike Shatrughan Chauhan case, why no legal aid has been provided to Yakub Memon after rejection of his mercy plea. Why the copy of order rejecting Yakub’s plea not given, asks Yakub’s counsel.
  14. “Will you challenge the rejection of mercy plea,” Justice Misra asks Yakub Memon’s lawyer.
  15. If I get the copy of the order rejecting Yakub Memon’s plea, I will challenge it, says his lawyer.
  16. The Attorney General begins the argument.
  17. It is incorrect to say it is the first mercy plea filed by Yakub Memon as he did not distance himself from the plea filed his brother: Attorney General
  18. Yakub Memon is abusing the system by filing repeated mercy pleas. He can go on making representations and delay procedure: Attorney General
  19. If Executive has not given mercy, then the death warrant upholds: Attorney General
  20. The court should not quash a death warrant upheld 10 hours ago: Attorney General
  21. The three-judge bench to pronounce the judgement shortly. Even before ink of previous judgement has dried, a new petition comes assailing the justifiability of the execution warrant: Supreme Court
  22. Supreme Court upholds death warrant issued to Yakub Memon.