Kejriwal urges Centre to not do politics, work together to get Nirbhaya convicts hanged soon

After Union Minister Smriti Irani attacked the Delhi government over the delay in commuting the death sentence to the four convicts of Nirbhaya gang-rape case, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday said that politics should not be done on the matter and both the state and central government should work together to get the rapists hanged soon.

"The execution of the culprits in the Nirbhaya case has been postponed for some days. People of the country are pained by this. We all want the culprits to be handed at the earliest. I am also pained that on such sensitive matter, politics is being done," Kejriwal said in a video posted on his official Twitter handle.

"I heard Prakash Javadekar's comments a few days back. He said because of AAP there has been a delay. Today, I heard Smriti Irani's statement, she also said that there has been a delay because of AAP," he said.

"I want to ask them, whether the convicts in the Nirbhaya case will be executed early by abusing AAP? Nothing will happen by abusing each other. The need of the hour is that we all, Delhi government and Centre, together ensure that the culprits be hanged at the earliest. This is our duty towards the nation, society, women in the country and Nirbhaya's parents... We should ensure that they (convicts) should not use the fault in the system," Kejriwal further said.

Earlier today, a Delhi court had issued a fresh death warrant against the four death-row convicts in the Nirbhaya rape case who will now be executed on February 1 at 6 am. Earlier, they were to be hanged on February 22 at 7 am.

Moreover, Kejriwal suggested that in the future, a system should be implemented wherein convicts in such cases get hanged within six months.

"I want to work with the central government on this issue. We will do whatever we can. Let us together create a safe city for our women," he said.

The public prosecutor representing the Tihar jail authorities requested the court to issue fresh date and time of execution.

Four convicts -- Vinay, Akshay, Pawan and Mukesh -- were convicted and sentenced to death for raping a 23-year-old woman in a moving bus in the national capital on the intervening night of December 16-17, 2012.

The victim, who was later given the name Nirbhaya, had succumbed to injuries at a hospital in Singapore where she had been airlifted for medical treatment.

Earlier today, Smriti Irani slammed the AAP over the delay in commuting the death sentence to the four convicts of Nirbhaya gang-rape case after the review petition of the rapists was dismissed in July 2018.

"Why was the prison department, which comes under the AAP government, sleeping after the dismissal of review petition in July 2018? Why did the government give Rs 10,000 and a sewing kit to juvenile rapist when he was released? Did not they see tears of Nirbhaya's mother?" Irani said.