Belagavi: After a long 33-year rest to the gallows at Hindalga prison, authorities are dusting and oiling the apparatus to carry out fresh hanging after they received a copy of the Supreme Court order to hang notorious rapist and murderer Umesh Reddy, who has been lodged in Hindalga prison for the last 10 years.
Four of Veerappan's men, who were on death row for killing 22 policemen and lodged at the Hindalga prison, got a reprieve from the Supreme Court commuted their death sentence to life only because of government's undue delay in hanging them even after their clemency petition was rejected by the President.
But the government may not repeat the same folly this time and will go ahead with the execution of Umesh Reddy as soon as the jail authorities get a final order from a Bengaluru court that adjudicated in the Reddy case initially.
President Pranab Mukherjee rejected Reddy's mercy petition and soon after, the Supreme Court too quashed his mercy review petition, confirming his death by hanging.
The authorities at the Hindalga prison have already got a soft copy of the Supreme Court order. But as per rules, they have to receive the hard copy and send it to the trial court before hanging.
On receiving the order, the trial court prepares a schedule for hanging and issues a black warrant, giving the green signal for jail authorities to executive the criminal, sources said.
"After the black warrant is issued, the authorities are given 14 days within which Reddy has to be hanged. The hangman at the prison has already started training and is carrying out mock exercises," the sources said.
A copy of the SC order was served to Reddy in the jail and he was also informed about the preparations being made to hang him soon. Reddy did not react and remained clam, they said.
Reddy was lodged in the dark cells of the Hindalga jail on October 29, 2006 after he was shifted from the Ballari jail.
The last hanging at the Hindalga prison was carried out on November 9, 1983 when Hanumappa Mariyappa Mariyal of Gokak was executed. Six people were hanged in 1976 and five others in 1978. As of now, 27 criminals sentenced to death including Reddy are awaiting their turn to the gallows, the sources said.
