7 Years after the gruesome rape and murder, all four convicts were hanged to death on friday i.e. 20 March, 2020. The Rarest of Rare case which shook Delhi and outraged India. On the night of 16 December, 2012 Six men gang raped a 23 year old paramedical student on a moving bus in Delhi. This heinous crime case brought entire outraged nation on streets with unity to provide Justice to Nirbhaya . This journey of justice took seven years to reach its destination.
Here is an entire timeline of Nirbhaya’s Justice journey of entire nation.
Year 2012
December 16: Nirbhaya and her friend Awindra Pratap Pandey boarded a bus from Munirka bus stand to reach their home in Dwarka. Nirbhaya was Gang raped and brutally assaulted by six men in a private bus. On her resistance, she was inserted a rod into her vagina , which destroyed her internal organs and ripped her intestine apart. Awindra was also assaulted and both of them were thrown out of moving vehicle. The victims admitted were to safdarjung Hospital. Rashmi Ahuja recorded Nirbhaya’s statement and it is considered as First dying declaration.
December 17:  Identification of accused as Ram Singh , Mukesh , Vinay Sharma and Pawan Gupta. Widespread protests erupt demanding stringent action against the accused.
December 18:  Ram Singh and three others arrested.
December 20: Victim's friend testifies.
December 21: A juvenile , the fifth accused arrested from Anand Vihar bus terminal in Delhi. Police conduct raids in Haryana and Bihar to nab the sixth accused, Akshay Thakur. The Sub-Divisional Magistrate Usha Chaturvedi records Nirbhaya’s statement in the hospital
December 23: Protesters defy prohibitory orders, take to the streets. Delhi Police Constable Subhash Tomar, on duty to control protests, rushed to hospital with serious injuries.
December 25: Nirbhaya's condition declared critical. 
December 26 :  Following a cardiac arrest, Nirbhaya sent to Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore.
December 29 : Nirbhaya succumbs to injuries and other medical conditions. Police added murder charge in the FIR.
Year 2013
January 3 :A charge sheet filed against five adults accused of murder, gang rape, attempt to murder, kidnapping, unnatural offences and dacoity.
January 4 : A supplementary chargesheet was filed.
Jan 5 :  Court takes congnisance of charge sheet.
Jan 7: Court orders in-camera proceedings.
Jan 17: Fast Track Court starts proceedings against the five adult accused.
Jan 28 :  Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) says minority of juvenile accused is proved.
Feb 2: FTC frames charges against five adult accused.
Feb 28: JJB frames charges against the minor.
Mar 11: Ram Singh commits suicide in Tihar Jail.
August 31 : JJB convicts minor of Gang Rape and Murder sends the juvenile to three years imprisonment.
September 10 : Court convicts Mukesh,Vinay,Akshay,Pawan pf 13 offences including gang rape,unnatural offence,and murder of  a girl and attempt to murder her male friend.
September 13: Court awards death penality to all 4 convicts.
September 23: HC begins hearing the convicts' death sentence reference sent to it by the trial court.
Year 2014
January 3 :HC reserves verdict on convict’s appeals.
March 13 : HC upholds the death penality to the 4 convicts.
March 15 : Supreme Court bench stays the execution of the death sentence upon appeal presented by the convicts.
Apr 15: SC directs police to produce the dying declaration of the victim.
Year 2015
December 20 : Juvenile is released from the correction home.
Year 2017
May 5 : Supreme Court bench, headed by Justice Dipak Mishra, upholds the Delhi high court decision, which had sentenced four convicts – Akshay Kumar Singh, Mukesh, Vinay Kumar and Pawan Gupta – to death and says that says the case falls under the category of 'rarest of rare' and the offence created "tsunami of shock".
 Nov 8: Mukesh moved SC seeking review of its verdict upholding the capital punishment awarded to him.
December 12:  opposition of Mukesh’s Plea by Delhi Police in SC.
December 15 : Vinay Sharma and Pawan Gupta filed a review petition in the Supreme Court.
Year 2018
July 9 : SC dismissed the review petition of three convicts.
Year 2019
October 29 : Convicts were informed that they have only 7 days to file mercy petition from receipt of notice.
8 November : Vinay Sharma filed a mercy petition before President Ram Nath Kovind.
December 10 : Akshay moves plea in SC seeking review of his death penalty.
December 13 : Nirbhaya’s mother moved Supreme Court opposing the review filed by the convicts.
December 18 : SC rejected the Akshay’s review petition.
December 19: Delhi HC dismisses plea of Pawan Kumar Gupta claiming he was a juvenile at the time of the offence.
Year 2020
January 7 :  Delhi court orders 4 convicts to be hanged on January 22 at 7 am in Tihar jail.
January 14 : SC rejected the curative petition filed by Mukesh and Vinay.
January 17: President rejected the mercy plea of Mukesh.
January 25 : Mukesh Kumar moves the Supreme Court against the rejection of his mercy plea.
January 28 : Akshay approached SC with a curative petition.
January 30:SC dismissed curative plea of Akshay.
January 31 :  Delhi trial court suspended death warrants until further orders because mercy petitions of Vinay Sharma and Akshay Kumar are pending.
February 1: Vinay’s Mercy Petition rejected by the President.Centre moved HC against the trail court order.
February 2: HC reserves judgement on centre’s plea.
February 5:HC dismissed plea against trail court order, said all four convicts have to be hanged together,It directed them to take all legal remedies within a week, failing which the authorities ordered to take action in accordance with law. 
February 11:SC allowed the centre to seek issuance of a fresh date for execution.
February 14 : SC rejects Vinay Sharma’s mercy petition.
February 17: Fresh death warrants issued for the execution of the four convicts on March 3 at 6 am.
March 2 : The bench dismissed the curative petition filed by Pawan Gupta. In his plea, he sought lifetime imprisonment instead of the death penalty. He can now file a mercy petition before President Ram Nath Kovind.
March 5 : Mercy Petition of Pawan Gupta rejected by President Ram Nath Kovind. The four convicts will now be hanged on March 20 at 5:30 am.
March 18 : Death sentence stayed . convicts again takes up a plea. The lawyer of the convicts has also approached the International Court of Justice against the Indian trials of the four convicts.
March 19 : SC rejects curative petition of Pawan. Mukesh moved SC claiming he was not present in Delhi on the night of December 16, 2012, which  dismissed by SC.
Delhi court also dismissed plea of Akshay, Pawan, Mukesh for a stay on execution.

March 20 : Delhi HC dismisses plea of three convicts seeking a stay on execution, convicts move SC. In a pre-dawn hearing, SC brings down the curtain on the case by rejecting the plea of Pawan Gupta against the rejection of second mercy plea. All four convicts hanged in Tihar jail at 5.30 am.

On March 20 , 2020 Nirbhaya’s Journey of justice reached its destination and entire nation was waiting for this day from 16 Dec,2012.


About the Author: Ms. Shruti Chauhan is Law Student at PSIT, Kanpur. She can be reached at shruti2527schauhan@gmail.com . alert-info