Supreme Court Upholds Death Sentence To Terrorist In 2000 Red Fort Attack

According to the prosecution, on the night of December 22, 2000, some intruders had entered the area where the unit of 7 Rajputana Rifles of the Indian Army was stationed inside the Red Fort.

The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed a plea of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorist Mohammad Arif alias Ashfaq seeking review of its verdict awarding death penalty to him in the sensational 2000 Red Fort attack case that left three army jawans dead.

The top court said there was nothing on record which can be taken to be a mitigating circumstance in Arif's favour and the fact that there was a "direct attack" on the unity, integrity and sovereignty of India completely outweighs the factors which may even remotely be brought into consideration as the mitigating circumstances.

Dealing with the issue raised by the petitioner that the courts concerned had erred in allowing call records to be admitted in evidence in the absence of an appropriate certificate under section 65-B of the Indian Evidence Act, a bench headed by Chief Justice Uday Umesh Lalit said the other circumstances on record do clearly spell out and prove beyond any doubt his involvement in the crime.

The bench, also comprising justices S R Bhat and Bela M Trivedi, said it is well accepted that the cumulative effect of the aggravating factors and the mitigating circumstances must be taken into account before death sentence is awarded.