The Supreme Cout on Wednesday stayed the execution of Yakub Abdul Razak Memon, lone death row convict in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case.
The apex court issued notices to Special Tast Force Maharashtra and CBI on the plea filed by him Memon seeking review of death penalty in the blasts case.
The apex court on September 26 had stayed the execution of Memon, a key conspirator along with Dawood Ibrahim in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case, after he filed review petiton. It had on March 21, 2013, upheld the death sentence of Memon.
The constitution bench, in its verdict, had held that years spent behind bars during prolonged judicial proceedings cannot be a ground for converting death sentence to life imprisonment and review plea of the condemned prisoners must be given an open court hearing.
Supreme Court judge Justice U U Lalit, on November 12, recused himself from hearing death row convict Yakub Abdul Razak Memon's plea seeking review of the apex court's order upholding his conviction and capital punishment in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case.
The apex court had commuted the death penalty awarded by a special TADA court to 10 others, who had parked explosives—laden vehicles at various places in Mumbai, to life term by distinguishing their roles from that of Memon. Dealing with the case of Memon, a chartered accountant by profession and brother of proclaimed offender Tiger Memon, the court had said he was the "driving force" and a "mastermind" behind the blasts that had rocked 12 crowded areas in Mumbai leaving 257 dead and over 700 injured.
Memon is the third death row convict after Nithari rapist-cum-serial killer Surinder Koli who had approached the apex court seeking hearing of their respective review pleas in an open court. The apex court, on September 12, had extended the stay on execution of Koli till October 28 on his plea seeking review of its verdict upholding his conviction and death sentence in one of the murder cases.
