New 3-judge SC bench to review acquittal of Chhawla grang-rape accused

CJI Chandrachud said the court will constitute a bench comprising himself and Justices S Ravindra Bhat and Bela M Trivedi to hear the review plea

The Supreme Court on Wednesday decided to form a three-judge bench to consider a review petition by the Union Home Ministry against a judgement, which acquitted three death row convicts in the 2012 Chhawla gang-rape and murder case.

The Centre brought into the court's notice a "very important and vital development" of arrest of one of the accused in a murder case of January 26, this year after release from jail.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta mentioned the matter before a bench presided over by Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud.

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He said an 18-year-old was raped and brutally murdered. Now, one of the accused in the case has on January 26, 2023 slit the throat of an auto driver at Dwarka, he said asking the Chief Justice to set up a bench headed by CJI for an open court hearing.

The Chief Justice said he will constitute a bench of himself and Justices S Ravindra Bhat and Bela Trivedi, to examine the matter. The top court said it will also consider the request for an open court hearing.

The review petition claimed one of the accused, Vinod after being acquitted by this court of conviction and punishment granted to him for offences of kidnapping, gangrape, and murder, has after his release, killed an innocent auto driver when the deceased resisted robbery attempt.

The commission of murder after his release indicates that the accused is a hardened criminal who has abused the benevolence of this court, the plea claimed.

"This clearly goes on to show that he was indeed a criminal minded person and is in fact a threat to the society as a whole and does not deserve any leniency whatsoever," it said.

"This court may not like to ignore the fact that the accused Vinod seems to be habituated to committing gruesome crimes and does not deserve to be allowed to be in the society," it added.

The Supreme Court on November 7, 2022 gave benefit of doubts to the three death row convicts and set them free in the 2012 murder and gangrape of a 19-year-old woman in Delhi's Chhawla area.

The court had found "glaring lapses" during investigation and trial of the case.