Akshay Thakur, one of the convicts in the 2012 Nirbhaya gangrape and murder case, on Saturday filed a mercy plea, jail officials said.
"Akshay Thakur filed a mercy plea before President Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday," Director General (Prison) Sandeep Goel said.
Akshay and three other convicts were to be hanged on Saturday but a city court indefinitely postponed their hanging.
Additional Sessions Judge Darmendra Rana in his order staying the execution said, "Without commenting upon the dilatory tactics adopted by the convicts, suffice it would be to state that seeking redress of one's grievances through procedure established by law was the hallmark of any civilized society. The courts of this country cannot afford to adversely discriminate against any convict, including death row convicts in pursuit of his legal remedies, by turning a Nelson's eye towards him."
Earlier in the day, the President rejected the mercy plea of another accused, Vinay Sharma.
Nirbhaya’s parents to move court
Meanwhile, Nirbhaya’s parents are set to move a Delhi court seeking issuance of fresh death warrants against the four death row convicts after the President rejected Vinay’s mercy plea.
Speaking to IANS, Advocate Jitendra Jha, counsel for Nirbhaya's parents said, "We will move an application in order to inform the court regarding the latest developments stating that no pleas or applications of any of the convict is lying pending in any legal forum and hence they should be hanged."
However, according to the Delhi Prison Rules, after the President rejects the mercy plea of a convict, a period of 14 days is given to settle their earthly affairs.
Background of the case
The 23-year-old physiotherapy student, who came to be known as 'Nirbhaya' (fearless), was gangraped and assaulted on the night of December 16, 2012, in a moving bus in South Delhi. She died of her injuries a fortnight later in a Singapore hospital.
Six people -- Mukesh, Vinay, Akshay Kumar Singh, Pawan Gupta, Ram Singh and a juvenile -- were named as accused.
The trial of the five adult men began in a special fast-track court in March 2013.
The prime accused, Ram Singh, allegedly died by suicide in Tihar jail days after the trial began. The juvenile, who was said to be the most brutal of the attackers, was put in a correctional home for three years.
He was released in 2015 and sent to an undisclosed location amid concerns over a threat to his life.
Mukesh, Vinay, Akshay and Pawan were convicted and sentenced to death in September 2013.
(PTI and IANS inputs)