Delhi HC questions basis of plea on Afzal Guru, Maqbool Bhatt graves; petition withdrawn

New Delhi [India], September 24 (ANI): The Delhi High Court on Wednesday questioned the lack of supporting material in a plea seeking the removal of the graves of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru and JKLF founder Maqbool Bhatt from Tihar Jail, prompting the petitioner to withdraw the case with liberty to refile it with data.

A Division Bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela was hearing the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) moved by Vishwa Vedic Sanatan Sangh through Advocate Barun Sinha.

The petition claimed that the burial sites near Jail No. 3 had turned Tihar into a “radical pilgrimage spot” for extremist elements, in violation of the Delhi Prisons Rules, 2018 and the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act.

The Bench, however, pressed the petitioner to produce evidence. “You are saying people are going there and paying homage, but where is the data? Removing a grave which has been there for 12 years… Can we challenge that now?” Chief Justice Upadhyaya observed. It also noted that the government had decided at the time of executions to bury the convicts inside the prison to avoid law-and-order fallout.

After some arguments, Advocate Sinha sought permission to withdraw the plea with liberty to file afresh with supporting documents. The court allowed the request and dismissed the petition as withdrawn.

The petition, filed under Article 226 of the Constitution, sought urgent intervention of the Court for the removal of the graves of convicted terrorists Mohammad Afzal Guru and Mohammad Maqbool Bhat, presently located within the premises of Central Jail, Tihar, Delhi.

The petitioners submitted that the construction and continued existence of these graves inside a State-controlled prison is unlawful, unconstitutional, and against public interest. It is argued that this violates the Delhi Prisons Rules, 2018, which mandate that the bodies of executed prisoners be disposed of in a manner that prevents glorification, maintains discipline within the prison, and safeguards public order.

According to the plea, the presence of these graves has effectively turned Tihar Jail into a site of radical pilgrimage, where extremist elements assemble to venerate convicted terrorists. This, the petitioners contend, not only threatens national security and public order but also sanctifies terrorism in direct violation of the principles of secularism and rule of law enshrined in the Constitution.

The petitioners have therefore urged the Court to direct the authorities to remove the graves from Tihar Jail and relocate them to a secure, undisclosed location, in line with established State practice in cases of executed terrorists such as Ajmal Kasab and Yakub Memon, where every precaution was taken to prevent glorification. (ANI)

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