Vinay Sharma came from a modest, working-class family in Delhi. At the time of his arrest, he worked as an assistant gym instructor, a low-income but steady job that reflected the economic struggles faced by many young men in India’s capital. Like the other convicts in the case, Sharma’s background painted the picture of a man who lived on the margins of Delhi society, making ends meet through jobs that offered little stability or future prospects.

Not much is publicly known about his childhood or education, though neighbors and early reports described him as someone who kept to himself, showing no obvious signs of violent criminal tendencies before 2012. His association with the other accused, however, drew him into a circle where drinking, late-night outings, and lawless behavior became normalized.

The Nirbhaya case unfolded on the night of 16 December 2012 in Delhi. Jyoti Singh, a 22-year-old physiotherapy intern, and her male companion, Avnindra Pratap Pandey, boarded a private charter bus in Munirka, South Delhi, intending to travel home after a movie. The bus was driven by Ram Singh and carried five other men, including Vinay Sharma.

What happened inside the bus would horrify India and the world. The men taunted the couple, questioned why they were out late, and then launched into a savage assault. Avnindra was beaten unconscious with an iron rod, while Jyoti was dragged to the back of the bus and gang-raped by all six men, including Sharma. She was also tortured with the iron rod, which caused catastrophic injuries to her intestines.

Throughout the ordeal, Sharma and the others reportedly mocked and threatened the victims. After nearly 45 minutes, the men stripped Jyoti and Avnindra of their clothes and threw them out of the moving bus near Mahipalpur in freezing winter temperatures. A passerby alerted the police, and the victims were taken to Safdarjung Hospital. Jyoti survived for 13 days, undergoing multiple surgeries. On 26 December 2012, she was flown to Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore, where she died on 29 December 2012 from organ failure and sepsis caused by her injuries.

Police quickly identified the bus through CCTV footage and eyewitness testimony. Vinay Sharma was arrested within days, along with the others. Forensic evidence, including DNA samples, tied him directly to the crime scene. In court, Sharma’s defense claimed mistaken identity and argued he had no role in the fatal assault. The arguments were dismissed.

On 10 September 2013, a fast-track court found Sharma, along with Mukesh Singh, Akshay Thakur, and Pawan Gupta, guilty of rape, murder, unnatural offences, and destruction of evidence. On 13 September 2013, the judge sentenced all four men to death, declaring the case one that had “shaken the collective conscience of India.”

The verdict set off years of appeals. The Delhi High Court upheld the sentences, and the Supreme Court confirmed the death penalty in May 2017. In the lead-up to execution, Sharma and the others filed multiple petitions, including curative petitions and mercy petitions to the President of India. All were rejected.

In one final attempt, Sharma’s lawyer claimed he was mentally unfit for execution. This, too, was dismissed by the courts. On 20 March 2020, at 5:30 am, Vinay Sharma, along with the three other adult convicts, was executed by hanging at Tihar Jail.