No death row convict was possibly given such a wide opportunity to seek legal remedy. Memon was <g data-gr-id="31">hanged</g> a little before 7 am in a Nagpur prison, less than two hours after the Supreme Court dismissed his final appeal against his hanging in an unprecedented hearing that was held within the court premises in the middle of the night and continued till the breaking of dawn.
Meanwhile in Mumbai, the Maharashtra government too followed the rules in both word and spirit by allowing Memon’s family to claim the body and conduct the last rites in Mumbai, subject to some conditions deemed necessary to maintain public order. Yakub was also allowed a meeting with his elder brother Suleiman Memon. The UPA government had failed to inform the family of Afzal Guru, who was hanged for involvement in the Parliament House attack case.
On Wednesday, President Pranab Mukherjee and the Supreme Court both dismissed appeals from Memon challenging his hanging. His petition to the President sought mercy; in the Supreme Court, his lawyers argued that judges had not followed due process when upholding his death sentence earlier this week. When neither route brought reprieve, activists and lawyers filed a late-night petition arguing that Memon’s mercy petition had been rejected in an unwarranted rush by the President, and that a prisoner is entitled to a 14-day gap before execution once a request for clemency is turned down.
For the first time ever, judges of the Supreme Court had a <g data-gr-id="38">court-room</g> opened up in the middle of the night to hear the appeal. The same three judges who had ruled against Memon on Wednesday convened to weigh the final appeal. Nearly two hours later, they decided that Memon had been given “ample opportunity” to challenge his death <g data-gr-id="39">sentence,</g> and that he had availed of all existing legal options.
Explaining their verdict, they said they could not overlook the mercy petition filed last year by Memon’s brother on his behalf, which had been turned down by the President.
However, despite the unprecedented remedy provided to Memon, those opposing his sentence claimed that a fair deal was not given. Though Yakub was convicted and condemned for his role in the killing of 257 innocent citizens, the controversy leading to his execution has opened a Pandora’s Box with political parties trying to drum up debate on capital punishment.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley hit out at Congress for their leaders’ remarks questioning the execution of Yakub Memon. He asked Congress President Sonia Gandhi to explain why they were making such statements on an issue that was related to the country’s security. Talking to reporters outside Parliament, Jaitley described Congress’ comments on the issue as politically influenced and irresponsible. Earlier in the day, Congress leaders Digvijay Singh, Shashi Tharoor and Mani Shankar Aiyar had expressed displeasure over the execution of 1993 Mumbai blasts convict.