Nirbhaya Convicts Hanged: Here's How Much Pawan Jallad Was Paid For Each Hanging

The four men convicted of the gang rape and murder of a Delhi woman on December 16, 2012 were hanged in the darkness of pre-dawn on Friday. The hangings marked the end of a horrific chapter that had seared the nation's soul. Mukesh Singh (32), Pawan Gupta (25), Vinay Sharma (26) and Akshay Kumar Singh (31) were executed at 5.30 am for the savage assault on the 23-year-old physiotherapy intern who came to be known the world over as Nirbhaya, the fearless one.

The execution was carried out by Pawan Jallad from Uttar Pradesh's Meerut. After completing the hanging of the four convicts, Pawan left Tihar jail for Meerut amid tight security. Jail officials said the bodies were kept hanging for half an hour, a mandatory procedure after execution as per the prison manual. According to news agency IANS, Pawan thanked God and the Tihar jail administration for getting the opportunity to execute the convicts of Nirabhaya case.

"For the first time in my life, I'm happy to execute four convicts. I had been waiting for this day for long. I thank God and the Tihar jail administration," he said.

According to reports, Pawan will be paid Rs 60,000 - Rs 15,000 per each convict- for performing his duty.

Pawan learnt the expertise from his father who was also a professional executioner like their previous three generations. Pawan is common man with a wife and children.

This is the first time that four men have been hanged together in Tihar Jail, South Asia's largest prison complex that houses more than 16,000 inmates. The executions were carried out after the men exhausted every possible legal avenue to escape the gallows.

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After raping and brutalising Nirbhaya on a moving bus, the men, one of whom was a juvenile at the time, dumped her on the road and left for dead on the cold winter night. Her friend who was with her was also severely beaten and thrown out along with her. She was so severely violated that her insides were spilling out when she was taken to hospital. She died in a Singapore hospital after battling for her life for a fortnight. Six people, including the four convicts and the juvenile, were named as accused.

While Ram Singh allegedly committed suicide in the Tihar Jail days after the trial began in the case, the juvenile was released in 2015 after spending three years in a correctional home. (With PTI and IANS inputs)