Dec 16 gang-rape case: Convicts oppose appointment of amicus curiae

Two of the four death row convicts of the sensational December 16 gang-rape and murder case have written to the Chief Justice of India T S Thakur, seeking removal of two senior lawyers, appointed as amicus curiae by the Apex Court in the matter, their counsel said. Convicts Pawan Kumar Gupta and Vinay Sharma, who are currently lodged in Tihar Jail, have alleged in a letter that senior advocates Raju Ramachandran and Sanjay Hegde, who have been appointed as amicus curiae by a bench headed by Justice Dipak Misra, have spoken against them in media debates related to the incident. The letter, copies of which were circulated by their counsel A P Singh to the media, claimed that they have been falsely implicated in the case and the two senior lawyers should be removed in the interest of justice.