Abolish Death Penalty India: 1993 Mumbai blasts

Showing posts with label 1993 Mumbai blasts. Show all posts

Monday, December 24, 2018

1993 Mumbai blasts convict Tahir Merchant dies in Pune hospital (Maharashtra)

Apr 19, 2018, 06:30 AM IST

Tahir Merchant (aka Tahir Taklya), who was convicted in the 1993 Mumbai serial bomb blasts case, died at the state-run Sassoon Hospital, Pune in the wee hours of Wednesday. Merchant was lodged in Yerwada Central Jail, Pune.

Tahir Merchant

A close aide of underworld don Dawood Ibrahim, Merchant was awarded with death sentence. He was arrested on June 8, 2010, for his role in the Mumbai serial blasts that claimed 257 lives on March 12, 1993. Merchant was convicted for conspiring, facilitating and knowingly commissioning acts of terror. "Convict Tahir Merchant was admitted in Sassoon hospital at about 3 am due to chest pain. He died in the hospital during treatment at around 3.45 am," said Additional Director General of Police (Prisons) Dr BK Upadhyay.

The Supreme Court had stayed the death sentence of Merchant in December 2017. Merchant had attended the conspiracy meeting in Dubai and helped his associates to arrange men from Mumbai, who were sent to Pakistan for arms training. Merchant had also collected funds to procure arms. He had planned to set up an illegal arms manufacturing factory unit in India. Merchant, a close aide of Dawood and Tiger Memon, used to work as manager in a carpet shop at Sharjah in the UAE. He was arrested by Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) following his deportation from Abu Dhabi in June 2010. The Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (TADA) court in Mumbai had sentenced Merchant to death in the case on September 7, 2017, along with Feroz Rashid Khan.

ABOUT TAHIR TAKLYA

Tahir Merchant (aka Taklya) was arrested on June 8, 2010, for his role in the Mumbai serial blasts that claimed 257 lives on March 12, 1993.
Merchant had attended the conspiracy meeting in Dubai and helped arrange men from Mumbai, who went to Pakistan for arms training.
He had also collected funds to procure arms for terror activities.
The TADA court in Mumbai had sentenced Merchant to death in the serial bomb blasts case on September 7, 2017.

Source: https://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report-1993-mumbai-blasts-convict-tahir-merchant-dies-in-pune-hospital-2606434 (Accessed 24 December 2018)

Sunday, December 23, 2018

1993 Mumbai blasts case: SC stays death sentence of Mohammed Tahir Merchant (Maharashtra)

By Madhuri Adnal | Published: Monday, December 4, 2017, 17:28 [IST] 1

The Supreme Court on Monday stayed the death sentence of convict Mohammed Tahir Merchant in connection with 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case which killed 257 people and injured over 700.

The court had earlier convicted and sentenced all the seven accused under various laws including Indian Penal Code, TADA, Explosives Act, Explosive Substances Act, Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act and others. Merchant was convicted for conspiring, facilitating and knowingly commissioning acts of terror. All the seven accused were facing multiple charges which included criminal conspiracy, 'waging war against the Government of India' and murder. However they were acquitted of the serious charge of 'waging war against the nation'.

On March 12, 1993, Mumbai was shattered by a series of 13 blasts in quick succession at various locations in the city and suburbs, creating the worst unprecedented mayhem in the country, killing 257 and injuring 700 others.

Source: https://www.oneindia.com/india/1993-mumbai-blasts-case-sc-stays-death-sentence-mohammed-t-2595476.html (Accessed 23 December 2018)

All about Tahir Merchant and Firoz Khan, the two sentenced to death in 1993 Mumbai blasts case (Maharashtra)

Updated: Sep 07, 2017 16:54 IST

Hindustan Times

A special court awarded the death sentence to Tahir Merchant and Firoz Khan, while awarding life imprisonment to prime accused Abu Salem and Karimullah Khan in the 1993 Mumbai blasts case. Merchant was convicted for conspiring, facilitating and knowingly commissioning acts of terror.

Here are the roles of Merchant and Firoz Khan in the blasts case:

Tahir Merchant

Tahir Merchant made transport arrangements for the co-accused who were trained in Pakistan. The prosecution said he, along with Karimullah Khan, arranged for their passports. Merchant attended conspiracy meetings in Dubai and motivated his associates to arrange men from Mumbai to be sent to Pakistan for arms training. He collected funds to procure arms and planned to set up an illegal arms manufacturing factory in India.

Firoz Khan

On January 8, 1993, two months ahead of the blasts, Mohammed Dossa (absconding brother of Mustafa Dossa) sent Firoz Abdul Rashid Khan and another accused to Alibagh and Mhasla to inform Customs officials and landing agents about the landing (of arms and explosives) that was to take place the next day. He also attended conspiracy meetings.

Towards the end of the trial, he sought to become an approver. However, the court rejected his plea after the CBI told the court that it has enough evidence against all the accused and they don’t need any approver.

Source: https://www.hindustantimes.com/mumbai-news/all-about-tahir-merchant-firoz-khan-who-got-death-sentence-in-1993-mumbai-blasts-case/story-6TsoCgCC57pVYeI4gHpwCI.html (Accessed 23 December 2018)

Tuesday, December 18, 2018

Death row convict Yakub meets wife, daughter in jail

Updated: Jul 23, 2015, 22:00 PM IST

Source: IANS

Death row convict Yakub Memon on Thursday morning met his wife and daughter in the Nagpur Central Jail amidst tight security.

Nagpur: Death row convict Yakub Memon on Thursday morning met his wife and daughter in the Nagpur Central Jail amidst tight security. Memon's wife Rahin (42), daughter Zubeda (21) and some other relatives were permitted to meet him in the visitors' room inside the jail premises for around an hour. Incidentally, Rahin Memon was also an accused in the March 12, 1993, Mumbai serial blasts case, but was acquitted by Special TADA Court Judge P.D. Kode in 2006.

On Monday, Yakub's cousin and confidant Rahim Memon met him in jail along with some other relatives. Memon, 53, is likely to be executed at the Nagpur Central Jail premises in early morning of July 30. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis will make a statement in the Maharashtra legislature on July 29, a day before the planned hanging. Barely hours after the Supreme Court on Monday rejected his curative petition, Memon sent a clemency petition to Maharashtra Governor C.V. Rao seeking commutation of his death sentence to life imprisonment.

On Thursday morning, he moved the apex court again, challenging the death warrant issued by a Mumbai Court last week for his execution on July 30. Memon sought a stay on the ground that due procedure was not followed for issuing the execution orders. He also submitted before the Supreme Court that the death warrant was issued before he could exhaust all his legal remedies. The date of execution (July 30) was fixed even as his curative petition was pending before the apex court, he said. Memon, a chartered accountant, was convicted and awaded the death penalty for his role in the March 1993 Mumbai blasts which left 257 people dead and 712 others injured.

Source: http://zeenews.india.com/news/maharashtra/death-row-convict-yakub-meets-wife-daughter-in-jail_1635148.html (Accessed on 18 December 2018)

The Death Penalty Scenario in India

India is one of 193 countries that retains the death penalty. Some judges have delivered landmark verdicts upholding the rights of death row prisoners, while debates continue advocating abolition or reform of sentencing policies. The Indian government remains committed to retention, asserting executions occur only in “rarest of rare” cases. The death penalty applies to crimes including murder, kidnapping, terrorism, desertion, inducement to suicide of a minor or mentally-retarded person, and in certain cases of rape. Outrage over child rape and murder has intensified these discussions. After an unofficial eight-year moratorium, the government executed Ajmal Kasab (Mumbai attacks) in 2012 and Afzal Guru (Parliament attack) in 2013, both covertly and immediately after mercy petitions were rejected. Prior to this, Dhananjoy Chatterjee was executed in 2004 after 13 years on death row. Following these, many mercy petitions have been rejected, creating fear among death row convicts. Courts continue to hand down death sentences at an increasing rate. Empirical studies highlight the plight of death row prisoners. The India Exclusion Report 2017-18 found fair trial rights largely denied, with convicts often marginalized by caste, religion, poverty, and education. The Death Penalty Research Project (2015) documented socio-economic profiles and experiences of death row prisoners. Dr. Reena Mary George’s studies (2014, 2009) emphasized poverty, social exclusion, and dignity as central to death row experiences, and examined the human rights impact of the penalty. According to the National Crime Records Bureau 2015, 101 prisoners were on death row, with many sentences commuted to life. The “rarest of rare” doctrine introduced by the Supreme Court in the 1980s has not substantially limited death sentences, which have increased over the decades. Justice Joseph (2018) reaffirmed the Bachan Singh judgment but urged restriction of the death penalty to only those cases meeting its criteria. While updating the blog and conducting my own empirical studies, I observed the heinous nature of the crimes that were committed and thought about the families, about their loss, about the victims who for no fault of their own died. If I lost my relative or a dear friend, would I still oppose death penalty and would I still advocate to abolish the death sentence? Having worked in the criminal justice system and also having the seen the other side, where often it is the marginalized, vulnerable and oppressed who are on death row makes me want to advocate for abolition of this punishment. Victims should definitely get justice for their loss, for their pain. No one should escape the rule of law. As long as humanity exists; crime will exist. Should we not re-consider our sentencing policies? Reena Mary George