UP judge sentences 22 to death in 4 months. Who is Ravi Kumar Diwakar?

A judge in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar has sentenced 22 people to death in 10 cases over a four-month period, putting the spotlight on Additional District and Sessions Judge Ravi Kumar Diwakar. According to a report by news agency, PTI, the death sentences were handed down between April and August at Fast Track Court No. 3, where Diwakar has been posted since November 2025.The pace of the sentences has drawn attention because Uttar Pradesh's trial courts handed down 28 death sentences in 20 cases during the whole of 2025, according to the Death Penalty in India: Annual Statistics Report 2025 by the Square Circle Clinic at NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad.Diwakar's rulings include death sentences in cases involving the murder of a lawyer, a home guard, a farmer and a highway robbery-murder. Three people were sentenced to death in the murder of lawyer Sameer Saifi on April 6, followed by four in a murder case on April 28. Two people were sentenced to death on June 20, while one received the death penalty on July 2, two on July 6 and four on July 17. The remaining five sentences were handed down in August, including one on August 12 and four on August 31, reported PTI.The frequency of the rulings has revived discussion around the use of capital punishment and the "rarest of rare" doctrine, under which the death penalty is meant to be reserved for the most exceptional cases. The Square Circle Clinic's 2025 report recorded 128 death sentences across India, with Uttar Pradesh accounting for the highest number of cases at 28. The report also highlighted the significant gap between death sentences imposed by trial courts and those ultimately confirmed by higher courts.WHO IS JUSTICE RAVI KUMAR DIWAKAR?Born in July 1980, Diwakar was appointed as a civil judge in 2009, according to details cited in reports about his judicial career. Before his current posting in Muzaffarnagar, he served in several districts of Uttar Pradesh, including Sultanpur, Budaun, Varanasi and Bareilly. He first came into the national spotlight in 2022 when, as a civil judge in Varanasi, he ordered a videographic survey of the Gyanvapi mosque complex. The case subsequently became one of the country's most closely watched religious disputes.Diwakar later reported receiving what he described as malicious calls and death threats from international numbers. His security concerns came into focus after his Gyanvapi-related order.He drew further attention in March 2024 after making remarks referring to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath as an example of Plato's "philosopher king" in an order related to the 2010 Bareilly riots. The Allahabad High Court later expunged those remarks.WHAT ARE THE CASES?The 22 death sentences have come in 10 cases, according to government lawyer Kuldeep Kumar, as reported by PTI.Among the cases was the 2019 murder of advocate Sameer Saifi, for which three accused were sentenced to death on April 6. The prosecution said Saifi was abducted and killed following a dispute involving around Rs 40 lakh.On June 20, two men were sentenced to death for the murder of farmer Rajendra Saini. The court described the case as falling within the "rarest of rare" category, with the sentence subject to confirmation by the Allahabad High Court.On July 2, a man was sentenced to death for killing Home Guard personnel Ratiram while he was on duty. The court also held that the case fell within the "rarest of rare" category.On July 17, four men were sentenced to death in a highway robbery-murder case dating back to 2011. The court described the offence as a "rarest of rare" case.The death sentences passed by a trial court do not result in immediate execution. Under Indian law, a death sentence imposed by a sessions court must be submitted to the High Court for confirmation.- EndsPublished By: Shounak SanyalPublished On: Aug 17, 2026 20:12 IST