Nagpur jail prepares for execution of 1993 Mumbai blasts convict Yakub Memon

Nagpur: With barely a week left for the scheduled hanging of Yakub Memon, the sole death-row convict of 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case, preparations are in full swing at the Nagpur Central Prison with authorities conducting dummy trials.

Inspector General of Police (Prisons) Meeran Borwankar visited the jail on Friday evening to take a review of the preparation for the hanging, which is scheduled for 30 July.

“Preparations for Yakub’s hanging are going on in full swing. Trials of the hanging are being conducted on a dummy as per the jail manual and the rope required for the noose has been sourced from outside,” sources close to the jail authorities said in Nagpur on Friday.

Borwankar, who boarded a flight from Pune, arrived in the city late on Friday evening and immediately headed to the central jail to take a stock of the arrangements being made.

She is likely to remain in the city for a couple of days to ensure every thing goes as per the plan and laid down procedure on the D-day, sources said.

“However, the primary responsibility of the execution lies with the Nagpur Jail Superintendent Yogesh Desai, who was posted at Yerwada Prison in Pune, when the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks convict Ajmal Kasab was hanged there in November 2012,” they added.

Repeated attempts to contact Borwankar did not yield any result.

Memon, in a last ditch effort has moved a mercy petition to the Maharashtra Governor. His mercy petition is being processed by the Home Ministry and will be sent to the Governor soon. However, highly-placed government sources on Thursday said the state authorities would go ahead with the execution on 30 July.

Memon also moved the Supreme Court challenging the death warrant contending that all his permissible legal remedies have not been exhausted. The petition will come up for hearing on 27 July.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadanvis has stated that he would make a detailed briefing on 29 July, a day before the scheduled hanging.

As many as 257 persons were killed and over 700 injured in the serial blasts in Mumbai on 12 March, 1993. Memon was the only convict whose death penalty was upheld by the apex court.

PTI