The stage is set for the first execution in the deadly 1993 Bombay blast case. A TADA court has issued a warrant to carry out the death sentence against convict Yakub Memon, 53, accordingly which he will be hanged till death at 7 am on July 30 in Nagpur Central Jail.
Yakub was sentenced to death by hanging for charges of criminal conspiracy under Section 120-b of the Indian Penal Code by a TADA court way back in 2007. Subsequently, his appeals against the judgment were rejected by the Bombay High Court, Supreme Court and the President.
Memon, however, has moved a curative petition in the Supreme Court which may come up for hearing before the execution. “As of now there is no stay on his execution; we are going by the procedure,” said a senior government officer.
Sources said, the date and time of execution has already been approved by chief minister Devendra Fadnavis. Also, all authorities including courts and local administration of Nagpur have also been apprised about it. Memon's family has also been informed. As per law, the convict and his family are to be informed 15 days prior to the date of execution.
Sources in jail said Memon 's health has already been put on monitoring and so far it doesn't reveal any kind of physical or mental stress. Also, when asked if he would like to meet his lawyer, Memon refused. “He did not show any remorse or pain,” sources said.
Memon, a charted accountant by profession, was first sentenced to death on July 27, 2007, following which he appealed in higher courts. Memon had sought the recall of March 21, 2013 apex court order upholding his death sentence on the grounds that he may be held guilty of a conspiracy to commit terrorist acts but he was not actually involved in executing the blasts that led to death of people.
Memon's defense lawyers maintained that evidence could prove only Memon's involvement in the conspiracy to commit the terror act and the punishment prescribed under the now repealed Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act did not entail a death sentence. They further said under TADA, a person attracts death sentence only when he is actually involved in committing terror strikes resulting in deaths of people.
The Bombay blasts were India's first major, precisely coordinated serial explosions that claimed more than 260 lives and left around 700 injured.
The top court had in June, 2014 stayed the execution of Memon, who is the brother of Ibrahim Memon alias Tiger Memon, the alleged mastermind and the prime accused who is absconding in the blast case. President Pranab Mukherjee had in April rejected Memon’s mercy petition and the decision was left to the Maharashtra government for fixing the execution date.
