Nirbhaya gang-rape case: Brief profile of four convicts sentenced to death

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday upheld the death sentence awarded by the Delhi High Court against the four convicts in the Nirbhaya gang-rape and murder case.

While passing the judgement, the three-member bench of the court noted that it was a “barbaric incident”.

They said the aggravating circumstances against the accused far outweighed the mitigating circumstances cited in their favour.

Here are brief profiles of the four convicts.

Mukesh Singh

Twenty-year-old Mukesh Singh is the younger brother of Ram Singh, another accused in the case who died in prison.

Singh, 20, worked as a part-time driver and cleaner on the bus.

He was charged with hitting the couple with an iron rod after raping the woman.

He and his brother lived in the Ravi Dass slum in south Delhi.

Vinay Sharma

Sharma, 20, is a gym assistant and fitness trainer. He also lived in the same slum. Of the five convicts, he was the only one who had a school education.

He claimed in court that he was not on the bus when the crime took place.

Akshay Thakur

Thakur. 28, hails from Bihar and worked as a helper on the bus.

He was arrested five days after the crime in Bihar.

Besides rape, murder and kidnapping charges, Thakur, a school dropout, was also charged with trying to destroy evidence.

He is married and has a young son and his family lives in Bihar.

Pawan Gupta

Gupta, 19, is a fruit-seller. He too claimed in court that he was not on the bus at the time of the crime.

His father said his son was "falsely implicated".

He claimed that his son had gone to attend a music function at the time of the incident.

The Case:

A total of six people, including a juvenile, were put on trial for the December 2012 gang rape and murder case, which jolted the conscience of the nation.

Though they denied the charges, all of them were were found guilty, while a sixth died in jail.

Ram Singh, described as the main suspect, was found dead in Tihar jail. Police said the 33-year-old widower hanged himself.

He was allegedly driving the bus when they picked up the couple.

While the sixth convicted juvenile was tried as a minor. Though he is an adult now, he has been sentenced to three years in a reform facility.