Human Rights Watch said that India should take prompt action to abolish capital punishment, reports Vicky Nanjappa
Reacting to the execution of 26/11 terrorist Ajmal Kasab, the Human Rights Watch has demanded that the Indian government should immediately reinstate its moratorium on executions with a view to abolishing death penalty.
India ended its eight-year unofficial moratorium on executions on Wednesday after it hanged Kasab, convicted for his role in the 2008 Mumbai attacks that killed 166 people and wounded more than 300, HRW said.
"The hanging of Kasab marks a distressing end to India's moratorium on executions and is a step backwards for India's justice system," said Meenakshi Ganguly, South Asia director at HRW.
"The government should take prompt and decisive action toward a total abolition of capital punishment," she added.
India executed Kasab just two days after it opposed a draft resolution by the United Nations General Assembly's human rights committee calling for a global moratorium on capital punishment. India was among the 39 countries that voted against the resolution, which was adopted with 110 votes in favour. Thirty-six countries
abstained.