Thought of killing Nirbhaya rapists never crossed my mind: Ex-Delhi top cop

New Delhi: Former Delhi Police commissioner Neeraj Kumar, who handled the Nirbhaya gangrape-and-murder case, on Friday said the thought of killing the accused never crossed his mind.

"There was a lot of pressure at that time, but the thought of killing them never came. We were getting messages, asking us to throw the accused in front of hungry lions. But we followed the law," he told PTI over phone.

Kumar’s remarks came in the context of an encounter in Hyderabad on Friday where four men accused of raping a veterinarian last week were killed by the police.

The encounter has hailed by the family of the 23-year-old paramedic student, dubbed Nirbhaya by the media, who was brutally gangraped in the national capital in December 2012 and later died of injuries. Her rapists, who were sentenced to death, are still awaiting their fate in Tihar Jail.

"Today the court, the government and the Delhi Police should see what example the Hyderabad police have set. It is my request to the judiciary and the Centre that Nirbhaya's accused should be hanged at the earliest and set an example before the society... the way they commit heinous crime, they will meet the same fate," Nirbhaya's mother said.

“Police has done a great job and I demand no action should be taken against the police personnel," she added.

Nirbhaya's father said had the police not acted promptly and shot the accused, they would have fled. "It is good that the police showed prompt response and acted. Otherwise the accused would have fled and it would have been difficult to catch them. The escape would also have raised questions on the efficiency of the police," he said.

Her father said the family has been awaiting justice for seven years now.

"The family of the Hyderabad doctor will not have to wait for seven years for justice like us. We can understand the pain of her parents. At least, they got justice early," he said.

Nirbhaya's grandfather also welcomed the step, saying actions like these will deter those involved in heinous crimes.

"I appreciate the killing of rapists by the police in an encounter. Such steps will create fear among rapists and deter them from committing such heinous acts," he told reporters at his ancestral village in Ballia.