India’s Law Ministry said there was no “compelling reason” to stop the hanging on Friday of a Kashmiri Muslim found guilty of plotting a 2001 attack on parliament, a report said Wednesday. The ministry’s advice came after President Abdul Kalam sought the opinions of the law and home departments ahead of deciding on a mercy petition filed by the family of the condemned man, Mohammed Afzal Guru.Last month, a court set October 20 as the date for the execution of Guru, who was convicted of helping plot the raid that left 14 people dead, including the five attackers, and brought nuclear-armed India and Pakistan close to war. India blamed Pakistan-backed militants fighting against its rule in Indian Kashmir for what it called a terrorist strike at the heart of Indian democracy, but Islamabad denied involvement.
The Law Ministry said there was “no compelling reason or circumstance” or strong “legal ground” to commute Guru’s death sentence under the constitution, the Indian Express newspaper said. “There is no substantial legal point involved in the case, except the argument that there was no direct evidence against” Guru, the report quoted unnamed Law Ministry sources as saying.