Afzal withdraws plea on solitary confinement

NEW DELHI: Mohd Afzal, the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) militant sentenced to death for plotting attack on Parliament in 2001, on Monday withdrew his petition in which he had sought an end to his solitary confinement in Tihar Jail.

Afzal had last month moved an application before Additional Sessions Judge Ravinder Kaur seeking his transfer from a solitary ward in Tihar Jail to a general ward.

He had contended that his continuous solitary imprisonment was leading to "mental complications".

The court had issued Afzal's death warrant on September 26, last year and he was lodged in solitary confinement since then as per jail manuals.

However, Afzal's execution was stayed after he had moved a clemency petition before the President.

Afzal's death sentence by the trial court, which was pronounced on December 18, 2002, has been confirmed by the Delhi High Court and upheld by the Supreme Court.