Afzal Guru was hanged early on Saturday morning at 8.00 am. President Pranab Mukherjee had rejected his mercy plea on February 3. Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde signed the execution order on February 4 and the final date of execution was decided on February 8. A day later, the Parliament attack convict was hanged.
Vimla Mehra, DG (Prisons), said Afzal Guru was in good health and was hanged in the presence of a magistrate, a doctor and other jail officials.
Security was tightened and curfew imposed in several areas of Kashmir Valley including Srinagar, Baramulla and Anantnag after Afzal was hanged. Cable TV services also shut down in the Kashmir Valley.
Protests erupted in Sopore and Baramulla districts of Jammu and Kashmir. Sopore is the hometown of the Jaish-e Mohammad terrorist. Reports said that at least two people were injured in the protests and had been sent to Srinagar hospital.
Families of victims who died during the attack said it had brought a sense of closure to them.
Political parties have welcomed the execution -
"This decision was delayed but we welcome it," said Rajiv Pratap Rudy of the BJP
Hurriyat calls for four-day mourning for Afzal Guru
Moderate Hurriyat Conference led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on Saturday announced four-day mourning on the death of Mohammad Afzal Guru, who was hanged this morning following his conviction in the Parliament attack case.Hurriyat also demands immediate return of the mortal remains of Guru so that he can be given a burial according to his family's wishes and as per Islamic rituals.
Jamaat-e-Islami condemn Afzal's hanging
Jamaat-e-Islami condemned Afzal's hanging saying "the hanging of Guru in Tihar Jail mysteriously is an expression of extreme despotism and tyranny by the Government of India". "This action has deeply hurt the sentiments of more than one crore Kashmiri people. In order to achieve its nefarious political designs, the party holding the reigns of power in Delhi has always been committing such tactical tyrannical actions since 1947 whenever this party seemed to lose its power," a spokesman of the Jamaat, Zahid Ali said
Afzal Guru did not get a fair trial says Cousin Yaseen Guru
Yaseen Guru, a cousin of Afzal Guru said Afzal Guru did not get a fair trial."It is all rubbish that we were told before the execution... We came to know about it through the media." Yaseen said the family was not told that President Pranab Mukherjee had rejected his mercy petition.
Note
Afzal Guru, convicted in the December 13, 2001 Parliament attack.Nine security personnel, including five policemen, were killed when suspected Pakistan-backed terrorists had attacked Parliament. Afzal Guru's execution had been initially scheduled on October 20, 2006. The execution was stayed after his wife filed a mercy petition with the President.
Parliament attack convict Mohammed Afzal Guru was hanged on Saturday at the Tihar jail in New Delhi. Following is the chronology of events leading to the Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorist's execution:
December 13, 2001: Five terrorists enter Parliament complex and open indiscriminate fire, killing nine people and injuring over 15.
December 15, 2001: Delhi Police pick up Afzal Guru, a member of terrorist outfit Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM), from Jammu and Kashmir. S A R Geelani of Delhi University's Zakir Hussain College picked up for questioning and later arrested. Two others - Afsan Guru and her husband Shaukat Hussain Guru - were picked up later.
December 29, 2001: Afzal Guru sent to 10-day police remand.
June 4, 2002: Charges are framed against four people - Afzal Guru, Geelani, Shaukat Hussain Guru, Afsan Guru and Geelani.
December 18, 2002: Death sentence given to S A R Geelani, Shaukat Hussain Guru and Afzal Guru, while Afsan Guru is let off.
Aug 30, 2003: Jaish-e-Muhammad leader Ghazi Baba, prime accused in the attack, is killed in an encounter with the Border Security Force (BSF) in Srinagar. Three more militants along with him are also killed in the 10-hour encounter.
October 29, 2003: Geelani acquitted in the case.
August 4, 2005: The Supreme Court, while confirming the death sentence of Afzal Guru, commutes Shaukat Hussain Guru's death sentence to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment.
September 26, 2006: Delhi court orders Afzal to be hanged.
Oct 3, 2006: Afzal Guru's wife Tabasum Guru files a mercy petition with then President A P J Abdul Kalam.
January 12, 2007: The Supreme Court dismisses Afzal Guru's plea seeking review of his death sentence, saying "there is no merit" in it.
May 19, 2010: Delhi government rejects Afzal Guru's mercy petition; endorses capital punishment awarded to him by the Supreme Court.
December 30, 2010: Shaukat Hussain Guru released from Delhi's Tihar Jail.
December 10, 2012: Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde says he would examine Afzal Guru's file after Parliament's Winter session concludes on December 22.
February 3, 2013: President Pranab Mukherjee rejects Afzal Guru's mercy petition
February 9, 2013: Afzal Guru hanged in Tihar Jail.
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