Legal Correspondent New Delhi, January 19
The Supreme Court today stayed the execution of two Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) militants, Mohammed Afzal and Shaukat Hussain, alias Guru, in the Parliament attack case, in which their capital punishment was upheld by the Delhi High Court.
The stay was granted by a Bench comprising Mr Justice S.N. Variava and Mr Justice H.K. Sema, while issuing notice to the Delhi Police on a appeal by Shaukat.
The court also issued notice to two other co-accused, former Zakir Hussain College lecturer S.A.R. Geelani and Navjot Sandhu alias Afsan, the wife of Shaukat, asking them to file replies by February 26 to the Delhi Police appeal, challenging their acquittal by the High Court.
While staying the execution of Afzal and Shaukat, the court said the two acquitted persons, Geelani and Afsan, would not go abroad without its permission.
Challenging the acquittal of the duo, the Delhi Police in its Special Leave Petition contended that the High Court had “erred” in coming to the conclusion that they were not involved in the criminal conspiracy
hatched by the Pakistani militants to attack Parliament on December 13, 2001.
While Geelani was awarded death sentence by the Special POTA court here, Afsan was sentenced to five-year jail term for concealing the conspiracy, a part of which was “hatched” at her husband’s house when she was also present.
The High Court on October 29 had acquitted Geelani and Afsan giving them benefit of doubt, holding that there were not sufficient evidence against them.
The High Court had upheld the conviction and death penalty of Guru and Mohammed Afzal when the matter came before it for confirmation of the lower court order as well as in appeals. However, Afzal had neither filed an appeal in the High Court nor in the Supreme Court.
