Nirbhaya gang-rape case: Nation rejoices as SC upholds death sentence to convicts

Delivering justice after five long years of wait, the Supreme Court on Friday, while upholding its earlier order of death sentence to four convicts in the December 2012 Nirbhaya gang rape case, termed the brutal incident as 'barbaric'.

A bench headed by Justice Dipak Misra and comprising Justices R. Banumathi and Ashok Bhushan was hearing the matter. Justice Deepak Mishra observed in the order that it seems it is a 'story of some different world'.

"Taking the serious injuries, the severe nature of the offence committed by the convicts, we are upholding the sentence," the bench said.

Justice Banumathi said there should be the systematic education of all children to ensure the fact that they give respect to women.

Justice Banumathi also said that except the Dhananjoy Chatterjee case, in no other rape and murder case, capital punishment had been executed. She has also suggested certain other measures ensure gender Justice in the society.

One of the lawyers B.L. Kapoor, while hailing the apex court's verdict said that it was one of the rarest of the rarest cases as it shocked the collective conscience of the society.

"The brutality with which the crime was committed, it makes it come under rarest of the rarest cases. The Supreme Court upheld the High court's judgment citing its earlier judgment that the one which shocks the collective conscience of the society is dubbed as rarest of the rarest case," he told ANI.

Rajiv Mohan, who was the public prosecutor in the case in the lower courts, told ANI that it is a good judgment that the Supreme Court has passed today.

A teary-eyed Nirbhaya's father said it was a victory for his family. "I am now very happy and satisfied with the judgment," he said.

However, the defence lawyer, unhappy with the verdict, said they would be filing a review petition after reading the order.

"Justice is not done. We will file a review petition after reading the order. You cannot give a death sentence to anyone for a message to the nation. The meaning of punishment is the improvement. There is a right to live. In this, the human rights have been neglected, Mahatma Gandhi's ideology has been neglected as this is violence," Singh said.

Six men, including the 17-year-old juvenile, gang-raped a 23-year-old physiotherapy intern in a moving bus on December 16, 2012, in the national capital.

The girl and her friend were returning home after watching a movie when they were coaxed into the bus by the accused, who then beat up her friend before taking turns in raping her.

The girl succumbed to her injuries in a Singapore hospital on December 29, 2012.

The convicts - Akshay, Pawan, Vinay Sharma and Mukesh - challenged the Delhi High Court order which had sentenced them to the gallows.

-ANI