Supreme Court of India.
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New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday decided to examine a curative petition filed by Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorist Mohammad Arif questioning the death penalty given to him in the 2000 Red Fort attack case which claimed lives of three Army jawans.
A bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justices Vikram Nath and J K Maheshwari considered the submissions of the counsel for the convict, who relied upon the Supreme Court's judgments after the death sentence was upheld by dismissing the appeal and the review petition.
The court issued notice to the Delhi government and decided to consider the plea.
Curative petition is the last legal recourse available to a litigant to assail the verdict, which has been upheld twice by the apex court itself by dismissing the appeal and the review petition.
The Supreme Court had in November 2022 dismissed the review plea of Arif in the case.
Arif alias Ashfaq was awarded the death sentence by a trial court in October 2005, and the Delhi High Court had affirmed the view of the trial court in September 2007. The top court had, in August 2011, affirmed the death sentence awarded to Arif.
The prosecution claimed, on the night of December 22, 2000, some intruders had entered the area where the unit of 7 Rajputana Rifles of the Indian Army was stationed inside the 17 th century Red Fort here and opened fire. Three Army jawans were killed in the incident.