Singh expressed his displeasure to Shinde on the sidelines of the two-day Governor’s Conference in Rashtrapati Bhavan that ended Tuesday, sources said, telling him that Afzal’s family should have been informed in advance about the execution carried out last Saturday morning.
Afzal’s family was informed about the hanging through speed post, which they received at their residence in Sopore only on Monday, more than two days after the execution. In this day and age when the family could have been contacted through telephone, Home Ministry officials relied on outdated provisions of the jail manual to convey the message through post.
The decision drew criticism, including from J&K CM Omar Abdullah and Congress leader Digvijaya Singh, who were of the view that the family should have been informed in advance and possibly also given an opportunity to meet Afzal.
Sources said Singh told Shinde that firmness in dealing with terror could have been exhibited but took exception to the manner in which the message was conveyed through post. Afzal’s family has been angry that they came to know about the hanging through the media after it was carried out.
Till late on Wednesday, Shinde was not available for comment. On Monday, however, he had suggested that secrecy was maintained in cases of rejection of mercy petition as the convicts would immediately move the courts, which would lead to further delays in deciding their pleas.
Now Left questions timing of execution
NEW DELHI: After saying the law has taken its course in the case of Afzal Guru, Left parties have questioned the timing of the hanging as also the manner in which it was carried out.
“The government responded to the vociferous demands raised by the BJP and Narendra Modi that Afzal Guru should be hanged. The feeling that a Kashmiri is expendable while those from other parts of India are not will only be reinforced,” an article in CPM mouthpiece People’s Democracy argued.
CPI’s mouthpiece New Age too reflected a change in its stand that “Afzal had got what he deserved”. “The government decided to hang Afzal in haste and in a secretive manner to score brownie points over BJP... and in the process violated rule of law and basic human rights on more than one score.”
ENS