Will the Nirbhaya Rapists be Hanged for their Heinous Crime?

The Nirbhaya case is one of India’s most well known and shocking incidents.

The 2012 incident involved a physiotherapy intern who was beaten and gang-raped on a moving bus by six men in South Delhi.

One of the suspects died during the trial period, while another was a minor. But in September 2013, the other four men were convicted and sentenced to death by hanging.

However, six years later and the convicts have still not been hanged for their heinous crime.

This is something, which is not uncommon in India, meaning that victims and their relatives are left painfully waiting, sometimes for years, for justice to be served.

But, it looks like the death penalties do not seem to be too far away. This comes after one convict, Pawan Gupta, was secretly transferred from Mandoli Jail to Tihar Jail.

The other three convicts have also been restricted from talking to each other.

One source at Tihar Jail said:

“As soon as Pawan Kumar Gupta reached Tihar from Mandoli jail, we banned communication between all the four convicts.

“Earlier, the three convicts in the case lodged in Tihar jail used to talk among themselves during the day time.”

Although there has not been an official order to carry out the death sentences, the administration at Tihar Jail is organising preparations to hang them.

The source added: “The cleaning of the execution chamber in Tihar jail can’t be ignored. The gallows are also been repaired by the inmates of Tihar.

“The activities going on in the execution chamber and increased security of it signals that something is on the cards.”

The source also explained that the execution chamber has been cleaned, which suggests that the four men will be hanged sooner rather than later.

“Not only the security of the execution chamber has been increased but the rust on the lever has also been cleaned.

“The jail authorities have also checked whether the lever is working properly or not

“The lights of the chamber have also been repaired and it has been cleaned.”

However, there could still be delays as the execution can only be performed by a trained hangman under the Delhi Jail Manual of 2018.

Administrators remain silent on the matter but are reportedly searching all the country’s prisons to find an “experienced” and “trained” hangman.

Although it may be suggested that justice will finally be served for all those affected in the Nirbhaya case, the fact is that it remains unclear.

One person who will only be pleased when the four men are hanged is Inspector Pratibha Sharma, who investigated the case.

She revealed that she worked tirelessly to give Nirbhaya justice.

“I will achieve job satisfaction and consider my work done when the convicts in the Nirbhaya case are hanged.

“In my whole career, I have never seen such a demonic act done to any victim.”

“The accused deserve to be hanged at the earliest. When the accused were being interrogated, they showed no signs of remorse.

“I still remember the face of Nirbhaya’s mother when the Supreme Court upheld the death penalty for all the accused.

“I was coming out of the court and she was at the door… she thanked me. I felt very satisfied that day.”

Inspector Sharma has investigated over 1,000 cases, most of them being crimes against women.

She explained that violence against women is common despite strict laws. She said that better education on the subject could reduce the number of crimes.

Inspector Sharma recalled two of the men pleading for forgiveness. When interrogating the minor, he claimed he was eight when he arrived in Delhi. She said:

“He worked at several dhabas, and during the period he was sexually assaulted. He held a grudge about this… when Nirbhaya was raped and assaulted, he enjoyed her pain.

“When I was handing the case, I stayed in the police station for four days. My daughter used to call me every few days and ask about Nirbhaya’s condition.

“The incident has had a severe impact on the lives of the officers who were part of the probe.”

It is clear that a lot of people were impacted by the case, according to Inspector Sharma.

With the possibility that the death penalty will be carried out on the four men in the near future, it looks like there may finally be justice for Nirbhaya in what was one of India’s most heinous crimes.