Support Against Death Sentence for Memon Gathers Ground, SC Verdict Tuesday

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court will announce its verdict on the hanging on Yakub Memon on Tuesday. The apex court is hearing the petition filed by the lone death row convict in the 1993 Mumbai serial bomb blasts to stay his execution set for July 30 on the grounds that he had not exhausted all the legal remedies available to him.

Meanwhile support against the death sentence for Memon has gathered ground, more so after the publication of an article by former Additional Secretary, Cabinet Secretariat B.Raman who spoke of ‘mitigating circumstances’ that had not been brought before the courts. He was referring to an understanding reached between the Indian intelligence agencies and Memon to commute the death sentence to life imprisonment for his cooperation and sharing of information.

There is clear division amongst politicians and legal experts. The government is opposing Memon’s petition. “ The media glare is uncalled for. The media cannot demand that there should be reopening of this case. The matter was heard by the competent authorities and Yakub Memon has served more than twenty years in jail. Just by killing him we would not achieve anything in the matter. He has suffered enough and what is there that can add up a new angle to it. While he was in jail his family has also been punished. If he now serves as a life convict it would be the right decision. You know waiting for death is higher punishment that he lived with for more than twenty years” said former Bombay High Court judge Justice Hosbet Suresh.

However, politicians and luminaries from all calls of life have submitted a new petition urging the stay of the death sentence to President Pranab Mukherjee. The Petition which is before the President of India talks about an international commitment to abolish death penalty. It also points out that every human being has the inherent right to life, anyone sentenced to death shall have the right to seek pardon or commutation of the sentence amnesty or commutation of death may be granted in all cases. It says that Yakub Memon has been suffering from schizophrenia for the last 20 years which makes him unfit for execution. His mental condition has been certified by jail doctors. Schizophrenia as a mental illness has been held by the Supreme Court. Also, Yakub Memon was not given advance notice of the death warrant hearing and as a result of which he and his lawyers could not participate and contest the issuance of the death warrant. Lack of hearing makes the present death warrant void in light of the past Supreme Court decision in Shabnam v. Union of India &Ors, Writ Petition.

The final plea says that, “ we most humbly request your Excellency to consider the case of Yakub Abdul Razak Memon and spare him from the noose of the death for a crime that was master-minded by someone else to communally divide the country. Grant of mercy in this case will send out a message that while this country will not tolerate acts of terrorism, as a nation we are committed to equal application of the power of mercy and values of forgiveness, and justice. Blood letting and human sacrifice will not make this country a safer place; it will, however, degrade us all”.

The petition has been signed by Justice Panachand Jain (Retd), Justice H.S. Bedi (Retd), Justice P. B. Sawant (Retd) Justice H. Suresh (Retd),Justice K. P. Siva Subramaniam (Retd) Justice S. N. Bhargava (Retd) Justice K Chandru (Retd) Justice Nagmohan Das (Retd) Shatrughan Sinha MP Mani Shankar Aiyer, MP Ram Jethmalani, MP. Majeed Memon, MP, Sitaram Yechury, MP, G.S, CPI(M) D. Raja, MP, Secretary, CPI K.T.S Tulsi, MP H.K. Dua, MP, T. Siva, MP, Prakash Karat, CPI(M), Member, Polit Bureau.Dipankar Bhattacharya, General Secretary, CPI(ML)-Liberation, Anand Patwardhan, Filmmaker, Naseeruddin Shah, Actor Mahesh Bhatt, and others.

Speaking to The Citizen, another Supreme court Lawyer Abni Sahu said, “Twenty years is a long period. And above all he is mentally ill. We can only go by the law and international law has certain prescribed norms. So, I believe everything will be taken into consideration before taking any decision in this regard”.