Wave of joy in Nirbhaya's village after SC order

Grandfather demands immediate hanging of convicts

Expressing happiness and satisfaction at the rejection of the review petition filed against the death penalty in the rape and murder case, the residents of the native village of Nirbhaya in Uttar Pradesh's Ballia district, about 400 kilometre from here, sought immediate hanging of the convicts.

''The convicts must be hanged as early as possible....they should not be allowed to stall their hanging on one pretext or the other....only then will we be able to do justice with our brave girl (Nirbhaya),'' said Savita Devi, the chief of Medwara Kala village, said on Monday.

She said that the villagers were sure that the apex court would reject the convicts' petitions.

Nirbhaya's grand father Lalji Singh also echoed similar sentiments. ''Justice will be done to Nirbhaya once her tormentors are punished in the way they deserve,'' he said.

He said that Nirbhaya's family had fought hard to ensure that the victim gets justice.

The entire village erupted in joy, when the news of the petitions' rejection reached the residents. They gathered outside their homes and hailed the SC order.

A special 'puja' was also performed at the local temple in the village.

The apex court on Monday rejected the review petitions filed by three of the four convicts against their death sentence.

Of the six convicts, one had committed suicide inside the jail while a minor convict had been released after serving his term.