It was shocking to know that Afzal Guru, a Kashmiri man convicted in a 2001 attack on India’s Parliament, was hanged and buried in Tihar jail. Guru had been languishing in jail for many years. With the Indian government being proactive in hanging the terror convicts belonging to a particular religion, it would be interesting to see whether it applies the same standards while dealing with terror convicts of other religions. I can understand that President Pranab Mukherjee rejected Guru’s clemency plea in the face of immense political pressure from the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Even though Afzal Guru’s death sentence was upheld by the Supreme Court, but Guru always pleaded innocent. He was not given a good lawyer to defend his case. At least, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah should have requested the central government to ensure a fair trial in Guru’s case.
I do not understand why there is always a biased probe by the government into terror acts carried out by Hindu fanatics despite having ample proof against them. Because of the shoddy government probes, these Hindu extremists always get away with their crimes. — Anees Lokhande, Alkhobar
Afzal Guru’s hanging
