Asha Devi to Jaising’s request to forgive convicts: ‘Won’t do it even if god asks me’
NEW DELHI: A day after a Delhi court issued fresh death warrants against the four convicts in the 2012 Delhi gang rape case, parents of the 23-year-old victim on Saturday said they would not forgive the convicts at any cost.
This was after senior Supreme Court lawyer Indira Jaising on Friday tweeted, asking Asha Devi, the mother of the victim, to forgive the four men who is scheduled to be hanged on February 1.
“While I fully identify with the pain of Asha Devi I urge her to follow the example of Sonia Gandhi who forgave Nalini and said she didn’t not want the death penalty for her. We are with you but against death penalty,” Jaising had tweeted on Friday, referring to Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Nalini Murugan who was convicted in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case.
The victim’s father Badrinath Singh told news agency PTI that this was a “wrong message”.
“She (Indira Jaising) is a woman herself. She should be ashamed of making such comments and apologise (to Asha Devi),” he told PTI. “We have been fighting the case for seven years. We are common people and not politicians. Humara dil Sonia Gandhi ji jitna bada nahi hai (We are not as large-hearted as Sonia Gandhi).”
Asha Devi was quoted by another news agency as saying,
“...even if god comes and asks me to forgive them, I will not.”
Leader of Opposition in Delhi Vijender Gupta too condemned Jaising’s statement. “Asha Devi diligently fought till the end to ensure justice for her daughter for seven long years. The four convicts who were being represented by a powerful lobby exploited all legal routes,” he said.
Gupta added that the senior lawyer’s remarks was “irresponsible and politically motivated statement, adding salt to the wounds of Nirbhaya’s family.”
Despite attempts to reach out to Jaising for comment, there was no response.
The death sentence of the four convicts — Vinay Sharma (27), Mukesh Kumar (32), Akshay Kumar Thakur (33) and Pawan Gupta (25) — is scheduled for 6am on February 1. The court previously set January 22 as the date for the hanging but that had to be rescheduled after one of the convicts moved a mercy petition.
On Friday, after the President turned down the mercy plea of Mukesh, the union home ministry sent it to the Delhi government. Tihar Jail, where the four men have been lodged, comes under the Delhi government.