Afzal Guru [5], a Kashmiri militant who received the death penalty for participating in the 2001 attack on India's parliament [6], was executed on Feb. 9. Guru was hanged after India's president, Shri Pranab Mukherjee, turned down his plea for clemency. Following Guru's execution, India's government imposed a curfew [7] in the India-controlled section of Kashmir [8] and deployed hundreds of police in anticipation of protests and potentially violent clashes. A group of 400 protesters gathered in the Kashmiri city of Muzzafarabad vowing to continue Guru's mission [9]. Guru's hanging was only the second execution carried out by India's government since 2004, with the other being Mohammad Ajmal Kasab, a gunman in the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks, who was executed in November [10].
The attack occurred on Dec. 13, 2001, when five men raided the parliament building in New Delhi. Nine people died in the attacks, including eight policemen. Guru was sentenced to death [11] on Dec. 18, 2002, and the Supreme Court of India [12] upheld the death sentence in April 2005. Guru was found guilty of providing material support to the attackers [13], for helping plan the attack and for being a member of the organization Jaish-e-Mohammed [14] (NCTC backgrounder [15]).
From Jurist [16], Feb. 9. Used with permission.
