June 13 : A convicted Pakistani national is set to face the death penalty in India after the president in New Delhi rejected his mercy petition over involvement in a deadly terrorist attack on popular monument Red Fort.

The man, Mohammed Arif aka Ashfaq, was confirmed to be a member of Pakistani terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba and was awarded death sentence on 31 October in 2005.

Indian president Droupadi Murmu rejected his mercy petition seeking relief from the execution sentence on 27 May, reported Indian news daily Hindustan Times. The mercy petition was sent to her on 15 May, officials aware of the matter said.

The attack, which took place a few days short of Christmas in December 2000, killed three Indian army personnel of 7 Rajputana Rifles unit. The armed forces personnel were guarding the pro Mughal-era monument from the inside when the terrorists entered the area. They later fled the spot by scaling the monument’s walls.

Indian police officials had said two men with automatic weapons had entered the Red Fort at about 9.40pm local time while a party for army families was being held inside. They reportedly fired indiscriminately.

Ashfaq was held four days later by the Delhi police’s special cell unit. He is currently lodged in India’s biggest prison facility – Tihar Jail – inside a high-risk cell. His mercy review petition was sent to India’s apex Supreme Court, after being rejected in lower Indian courts, but was rejected on 3 November 2022.