Overview
- On Monday, September 7, 2026, Additional District and Sessions Judge Ravi Kumar Diwakar sentenced Mohd. Nadeem to death for setting his 23‑year‑old wife on fire in a 2018 case and relied on the victim’s dying declaration after 11 prosecution witnesses turned hostile.
- The September 7 order took Diwakar’s tally to 23 death sentences handed down in roughly four to five months, a pace that drew intense local and national attention.
- In August an administrative order by the district and sessions judge removed about 97–100 pending murder and other serious‑offence files from Diwakar’s fast‑track court, a move that lawyers said reflected concerns about his recent pattern of capital rulings.
- Diwakar used the written judgment to allege repeated death threats to him and his family, reduced local security, and pressure from mafias and gangsters, and he has sought protection from senior officials while naming a specific alleged international threat linked to an account attributed to Adnan Khan.
- None of Diwakar’s death sentences have yet been confirmed by the Allahabad High Court, which must review capital orders and can confirm, commute, or alter them, so the rulings now face legal challenge and close judicial scrutiny that could affect appeals, case reassignment, and debate over judicial independence.