Delhi High Court has refused to reopen a long-settled matter concerning the burial of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru and JKLF founder Maqbool Bhatt inside Tihar Jail, dismissing a plea that sought removal of their graves.
The two convicts, both awarded the death penalty, were executed within the high-security prison complex more than a decade ago. Petitioners had argued that maintaining graves of convicted terrorists inside a government facility was inappropriate and urged the court to order their removal.
The bench, however, held that the matter had been consciously decided by the government at the time of the executions, taking into account several sensitive factors, and could not be revisited after so many years.
Also read: PIL alleged presence of these graves pose risk to security and public order in Tihar jail premises
“But removing a grave which might have been in existence with the last 12 years… the govt decided it keeping in view the fallout regarding permitting giving the body to the family or burial outside the Tihar jail? These are very sensitive issues… there are so many factors… govt (took a decision) keeping in view all the aspects… took a call. Can we now challenge that decision after 12 years? Removal after 12 years…” the court observed in its order.
The judges further noted that only the competent authority could review such decisions. Judicial intervention, they emphasised, was not warranted in the absence of a specific law prohibiting burial or cremation inside a prison.
By underlining the finality of executive action taken more than a decade earlier, the court effectively shut the door on attempts to stir controversy over the graves of Afzal Guru and Maqbool Bhatt within Tihar Jail.
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