SC stays execution of death sentence in Chhattisgarh

New Delhi, June 19 (IANS) The Supreme Court Thursday stayed the execution of the death sentence of Sonu Sardar, convicted and sentenced for killing five members of a scrap dealer's family in Chhattisgarh.

Staying the execution of the death sentence, a bench of Justice Vikramajit Sen and Justice Shiva Kirti Singh issued notice to the central and Chhattisgarh governments.

The Raipur Central Prison April 21 informed Sardar that his mercy petition has been rejected by the president.

However, Sardar, who moved the apex court, said that on Nov 27, 2004, when the family of five were murdered, his age was 18 years two months and should have been a mitigating factor that would have saved him from being awarded the death sentence. But instead his age was shown to be 23 years.

Sardar, in his petition, said that his review petition of May 28, seeking the recall of the Feb 23, 2012 apex court order upholding his conviction and death sentence, is pending decision.

The review petition was filed after some students of Delhi-based National Law University ascertained that at the time of committing the offence, Sardar's age was 18 years and two months.

The court also tagged Sardar's plea with earlier pending matters as he has also challenged the Supreme Court Rules, 1966, contending that appeals in death sentence cases by heard by a bench of five judges and the review in such cases be heard in open court instead of the existing practice of deciding them in chambers by circulation.