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New Delhi, Jan 29: The Supreme Court on Wednesday dismissed the plea by Mukesh Kumar Singh, one of the four death row convicts in the Nirbhaya gang rape and murder case, challenging the rejection of his mercy petition by the President.

A three-judge bench headed by Justice R Banumathi said that expeditious disposal of mercy plea by the President doesn't mean non-application of mind by him.

The court also said that alleged sufferings in prison can't be grounds to challenge the rejection of mercy petition.

The bench said all relevant material including judgments pronounced by trial court, high court and Supreme Court were placed before the President when he was considering the mercy plea of the convict.

The bench also comprising justices Ashok Bhushan and A S Bopanna rejected the contentions of the counsel appearing for Singh that entire materials of the case were not placed before the President when he was considering his mercy plea.

The bench, while referring to two files placed before it by the Centre on Tuesday, said that as per the January 15 covering letter which was sent by the Delhi government to the Ministry of Home Affairs, all relevant documents were sent.

The bench noted that detailed judgements of trial court, high court and the Supreme Court, curative petition filed by Singh, his past criminal history and his family background were sent to the Home Ministry by the Delhi government.

"All the documents were taken into consideration by the President while rejecting the mercy petition," the bench said.

The bench also dealt with submissions advanced by the convict's counsel, who had argued that the mercy plea was rejected at "lightning speed".

The bench said that if a mercy petition is expeditiously dealt with, it cannot be assumed that it has been adjudicated upon in a pre-conceived mind.

Shirdi, Jan 19: Shirdi in Maharashtra will remain closed for an indefinite period from today in the wake of state Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray's decision to develop Pathri town in Parbhani district as Sai Baba's birthplace.

However, Deepak Madukar Muglikar, Chief Executive Officer of Shri Saibaba Sansthan Trust, has said that Sai Baba Temple in Shirdi will remain open today and will not be impacted by the closure of the city.

"There are some reports in media that Sai Temple in Shirdi will remain closed on January 19. I want to clarify that it is just a rumor. Temple will remain open on January 19," Mr Muglikar said.

A call has been given for indefinite closure of Shirdi after Mr Thackeray's reported comment terming Pathri in Parbhani as Sai Baba's birthplace.

"Devotees will not face any difficulty if they come to Shirdi," said B Wakchaure, member of Saibaba Sansthan Trust.

Uddhav Thackeray has recently announced that Pathri will be developed as the birthplace of Sai Baba for religious tourism and also took a review meeting of the development plans in the Parbhani district.

One of the most popular religious destinations in the country, Saibaba Temple in Shirdi witnesses lakh of devotees visiting the holy site every year.

New Delhi, Mar 16: Chief Justice of India Sharad Arvind Bobde on Monday said that rules for preventing overcrowding in the courts to avoid the spread of coronavirus cannot be relaxed for journalists alone on the basis of profession.

"Can't make an exception on the basis of profession," CJI Bobde said while asking journalists to share information and notes and suggesting that a system can be put in place to facilitate daily media briefing by Secretary-General.

Video conferencing facility being contemplated may be brought into place but not sooner than one week from now and reporters may take turns to attend hearings, CJI Bobde said.

He said that the court does not wish to prevent any reportage.

Attorney General KK Venugopal and Solicitor General Tushar Mehta informed the Chief Justice of India about the crowded corridors on account of restricted entry inside courtrooms.

CJI Bobde said that he himself wishes to assess and take stock of the situation and may do so tomorrow at 10.30 am.

This comes after the top court introduced several precautionary measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus and allowed only restricted entry of lawyers, litigants, and journalists in the courtroom.

Thermal-screening of the lawyers, litigants, and media persons were also conducted in the Supreme Court on Monday amid coronavirus fears.