Nirbhaya convict Vinay Sharma injures self in Tihar jail

NEW DELHI: Vinay Kumar Sharma, one of the death row convicts of Nirbhaya gang-rape and murder case, injured himself by hitting his head against a wall in his cell early this week.

Tihar Jail official said Nirbhaya convict Vinay Sharma was hurt after he hit his head against a wall in his cell on February 16. He was, however, stopped by a jail official and treated.

"One of the death row convicts of the Nirbhaya case, Vinay, attempted to hurt himself by banging his head against a wall in his cell. He received minor injuries," said a Tihar Jail official, on the condition of anonymity.

Vinay’s lawyer had earlier this week told the court that he was on hunger strike in Tihar jail.

He also claimed that Vinay was assaulted in jail and had head injuries, while adding that he was suffering from acute mental illness and hence the death sentence cannot be carried out. The court had then directed the Tihar jail superintendent to take appropriate care of Vinay as per law.

Delhi court on Monday ordered that the four convicts in the Nirbhaya gang-rape and murder case be hanged on March 3 after it issued fresh death warrants, observing that deferring the execution any further would be "sacrilegious" to the rights of the victim for expeditious justice.

The court directed that the four men--Mukesh Kumar Singh (32), Pawan Gupta (25), Vinay Kumar Sharma (26) and Akshay Kumar (31)--be hanged by neck on March 3 at 6 am until they are dead. It is for the third time that the death warrants were issued by the court against them.