Nirbhaya convicts.

Vinay Sharma, one of the four death row convicts in the Nirbhaya gang rape and murder case, on Monday filed a fresh mercy petition before Delhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal, seeking commutation of his death penalty to life imprisonment.

The plea was filed by Sharma, through his advocate A.P. Singh under Sections 432 and 433 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).

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In his plea, he contended that he does not deserve the extreme punishment of death which is reserved for ‘rarest of rare’ cases where the alternative option of life imprisonment is unquestionably foreclosed.

“Considering the positive steps towards reformation, his young age, poor socio-economic circumstances, the petitioner humbly prays to commute his death sentence to life imprisonment,” the plea said.

Vinay Kumar Sharma, along with Mukesh Kumar Singh, Pawan Gupta and Akshay, has been sentenced to death for brutally raping and killing a medical student in Delhi on December 16, 2012.

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The date of execution is set for March 20.