Despite his family’s eleventh-hour attempts to seek clemency, Singaporean death row inmate Tangaraju s/o Suppiah was executed by hanging at Changi Prison at dawn today (26 Apr).
The 46-year-old had been sentenced to the mandatory death penalty after being convicted of trafficking cannabis into Singapore.
Source: Kokila Annamalai on Facebook
In the lead-up to his execution, his family and supporters delivered 59 clemency appeal letters to the Istana.
This went on while the prison went about making standard preparations, such as returning Mr Tangaraju’s possessions to his family.
Yesterday (25 Apr), his mother also got to pay him a visit. However, she allegedly did so without knowing about her son’s impending execution.
Prior to Mr Tangaraju, the last execution in Singapore took place in October 2022, claims criminal justice reform group Transformative Justice Collective (TJC).
At the time, the execution was of a 55-year-old Singaporean man, CNN reported.
A statement by Singapore Prison Service (SPS) confirmed Mr Tangaraju’s hanging this morning.
AFP News Agency quoted SPS as saying that the capital sentence was carried out at Changi Prison Complex.
TJC, which has played an active role in seeking justice for Mr Tangaraju, tweeted, “Rest in Power. #StopTheKilling”.
Source: @tjc_singapore on Twitter
TJC also confirmed with MS News that his death certificate has been delivered to his family.
In a Facebook post, local activist Kokila Annamalai shared that Mr Tangaraju’s mother visited him on Tuesday morning (25 Apr). Little did the 73-year-old know that her first visit in almost three years was also going to be her last.
Source: Kokila Annamalai on Facebook
According to the caption, Paapa was unaware that Mr Tangaraju would be facing the noose the next day. Her family withheld the truth, fearing that it would devastate her.
As such, Ms Kokila described her as being in “high spirits” and “excited” to see her son.
The visit also gave her a chance to get out of the nursing home she stays at, as she does not often get to leave or see her family.
During the visit, Paapa reminisced on things from the past with her son, like his birthdays and her wedding.
Mr Tangaraju reportedly asked the rest of his family to take care of her and assured her that he was well.
Concluding the post, Ms Kokila said Paapa will never see her son again unless President Halimah “acts now”, referring to her powers to grant clemency.
Hours before the execution, the United Nations Human Rights Office had asked Singapore to “urgently reconsider” the sentence.
According to UN News, the U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) expressed concerns “around due process and respect for fair trial guarantees”.
Source: @OHCHRAsia on Twitter
This comes after TJC alleged that Mr Tangaraju had not been granted legal counsel or a Tamil interpreter during his interrogation.
In the aforementioned post, Ms Kokila added that he had filed an application for the court to review his case on Monday (24 Apr).
However, the court purportedly dismissed the application without a hearing.
OHCHR went on to say that only “the most serious crimes” should receive the death penalty. It also stated that the use of it in drug offences is not in line with international standards.
MS News expresses our deepest condolences to Mr Tangaraju’s family and supporters.
Have news you must share? Get in touch with us via email at news@mustsharenews.com.
Featured image adapted from Kokila Annamalai on Facebook and Facebook.
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