On the upcoming execution of the four men convicted in the Nirbhaya gang-rape and murder case of 2012, senior lawyer Indira Jaising had tweeted that Asha Devi, the mother of the gang-rape and murder victim, should follow the example of Congress chief Sonia Gandhi who had “forgiven” Nalini. Nalini was one of the people sentenced to death for participating in the conspiracy to assassinate former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in 1991.
In 1999, Sonia Gandhi asked then President K.R. Narayanan to grant clemency to Nalini, citing the fact that she had a young daughter.
Responding to Jaising’s suggestion, Nirbhaya’s mother Asha Devi angrily remarked that just because of people like Jaising, justice is not done with rape victims. Asha Devi added she could not believe how Indira Jaising even dared to suggest such this. She met her many times over the years in the Supreme Court, not once she asked for her well being and today she is speaking for the convicts. Asha Devi further charged allegations that such people earn livelihood by supporting rapists, hence rape incidents don’t stop.
Indira Jaisingh was the top trend on Twitter at 11am and not surprisingly, most of the tweets were critical of her. Amit Malviya, the head of the BJP’s information and technology wing, took aim at Indira Jaising’s political affiliation and charged the Congress and AAP are doing everything to deny justice to Nirbhaya and her parents.
