Click to play videoSrinagar: Violent protests erupted in many parts of the Kashmir valley on Wednesday over a Delhi court's order to hang to death Mohammad Afzal Guru, the prime accused in the December 13, 2001 Parliament attack case.
People in Srinagar are angry and are demanding a presidential pardon for Afzal. His lawyers are considering filing for a mercy petition.
"The mercy petition is being filed on behalf of the Society for Protection of Prisoners and detainees amd I'm sure that if there's any justice, Afzal should not be given the death penalty," says Nandita Haksar, who is a part of the defence team.
Additional Sessions Judge Ravinder Kaur while issuing the order of execution, to be carried out at 0600 hrs (IST) at Tihar Jail here on October 20, said Afzal be hanged by neck until dead.
Police resorted to baton-charge and fired teargas shells to disperse a violent mob at Maisuma, the headquarters of the pro-independence Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) led by Yasin Malik, in the heart of the city.
Demonstrators, mostly JKLF activists, indulged in stone-pelting and burnt tyres to register their protest against the court verdict. Several policemen - two of them critically - and many protestors were wounded in the stone-pelting and teargasing.
A leader of the rival JKLF faction, Javed Mir, was arrested by the authorities at Maisuma when he was leading a demonstration. Reports received from Baramulla stated that the demonstrations were staged in many parts of the district over the court order.
People in large number came out on streets to protest against the verdict at Doabgoan in Sopore, the hometown of Afzal.
Police have described Afzal as a Jaish-e-Mohammed militant who helped the five terrorists in carring out the attack on the Parliament.
Afzal was accused of procuring arms and ammunition, purchasing the car used in the attack, providing terrorists accommodation in Delhi and "actively" participating in the conspiracy.
Afzal was sentenced to death by a special POTA court on December 18, 2002. The sentence was later confirmed by the Supreme Court on August 4, 2005.
The last time any hanging took place in Tihar jail was on January 6, 1989, when Satwant Singh and Beant Singh – accused in the killing of former prime minister Indira Gandhi – were executed.
THE CASE AGAINST AFZAL |
 Charges against Afzal include murder, criminal conspiracy and waging war against country. That, coupled with conclusive evidence from phone taps made Afzal's case fall under 'rarest of rare' crime. He has also been accused of sheltering and managing logistics for Jaish commander Ghazi Baba, and the five attackers. |
| Afzal's accomplices in crime were Delhi University lecturer SAR Geelani, Shaukat Guru and his wife Afsan. Afzal, Geelani, Guru were accused of having a hand in planning the strike, Afsan was accused of concealing conspiracy. |
| Geelani, Afzal and Shaukat sentenced to death by POTA court on Dec 18, 2002. The High Court in Oct 2003 upheld Afzal, Shaukat's death sentences while Geelani, Afsan Guru were acquitted. The court said proof against Geelani, based on phone taps, insufficient for conviction. |
| Supreme Court, however, upheld Afzal's death sentence, reduced Shaukat's sentence to 10 years RI. Geelani and Afsan's acquittals were upheld as SC agreed with HC that evidence against them was insufficient. |
| Afzal has not yet appealed for clemency, but lawyers are reported to have been considering. Rashtrapati Bhavan, too, says no mercy petition has been received. |
| Experts say court's permission needed to file mercy plea. If court says no, can move writ petition in HC/SC as last option. |
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