SC to resume hearing on Yakub Memon's mercy plea today

The Supreme Court will continue its hearing on the mercy plea of 1993 Mumbai serial blasts convict Yakub Abdul Razak Memon today.

The apex court has sought a clarification from Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi on rules for considering the curative petition of Memon, as he has contended that the death warrant was issued against him before the apex court's decision on his petition.

The development came shortly after the Centre strongly opposed the mercy petition Memon as it came up for hearing in the Supreme Court.

According to reports, the Centre pleaded before the apex court that all legal remedies have been exhausted by Memon, so, there are no grounds for it to hear his mercy plea.

Maharashtra Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao had yesterday held consultations with Home and Law Department officials over the petition.

The Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis-led BJP Government had earlier sent its opinion to the Governor late Friday evening on the plea submitted by Memon following the Supreme Court's rejection of his curative petition which sought a stay on execution of his death sentence slated for July 30.

The government, however, had earlier indicated that it stood for sticking to the schedule for hanging and abide by the Supreme Court's directions on the matter.

Memon, in his petition, has said that all legal remedies have not been exhausted and he has also approached the Maharastra Governor with a plea for mercy.

He had filed the mercy plea before the Governor immediately after his curative petition was dismissed by the apex court last week.

A three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice HL Dattu had on July 21 rejected Memon's plea, saying that the grounds raised by him do not fall within the principles laid down by the apex court in 2002 in deciding the curative petition, the last judicial remedy available to an aggrieved person.

Memon, in his plea, had claimed he was suffering from schizophrenia since 1996 and remained behind the bars for nearly 20 years. He had sought commutation of death penalty contending that a convict cannot be awarded life term and the extreme penalty simultaneously for the same offence.

The apex court on April 9 this year had dismissed Memon's petition seeking review of his death sentence which was upheld on March 21, 2013.

Memon's review petition was heard by a three-judge bench in an open court in pursuance of a Constitution bench verdict that the practice of deciding review pleas in chambers be done away with, in cases where death penalty has been awarded.