New Delhi, Jan 22: The Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to hear the curative petition of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorist Mohammad Arif against the death penalty awarded to him in the 2000 Red Fort attack case that left three Army jawans dead.
The top court had dismissed Arif’s review plea in the case on November 3, 2022.
Arif, alias Ashfaq, was awarded the death sentence by a trial court in October 2005. The Delhi High Court affirmed the trial court’s verdict in September 2007. He subsequently approached the apex court challenging the high court’s decision, and the Supreme Court upheld the death sentence in August 2011.
On Thursday, a special bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjay Kumar and Justices Vikram Nath and JK Maheshwari took note of submissions by Arif’s counsel, which cited apex court judgements delivered after the death sentence was upheld by dismissing the appeal and review petition.
“Issue notice,” the Chief Justice said.
A curative petition is the last legal recourse available to a litigant to challenge a verdict that has been upheld twice by the apex court itself—first through dismissal of the appeal and then through rejection of the review petition.
According to the prosecution, on the night of December 22, 2000, intruders entered the area where the unit of 7 Rajputana Rifles of the Indian Army was stationed inside the Red Fort complex and opened fire. Three Army jawans were killed in the attack.
