Four aides of sandalwood smuggler Veerappan on Saturday moved the Supreme Court against the execution of their death penalty. They were sentenced to death in a landmine blast case that had killed 22 policemen in Karnataka nearly 20 years ago. Their mercy petition was rejected by President Pranab Mukherjee on February 13.

Lawyers of Veerappan's aides said, the court did not take up the plea for hearing as urgent business on Saturday saying that there is no proof that execution will take place tomorrow.

Veerappan's elder brother Gnanaprakash, Simon, Meesekar Madaiah and Bilavendran were awarded death sentence in 2004 in the case. A TADA court in Mysore had in 2001 sentenced them to life term which was enhanced to death sentence by the Apex court..

The four convicts are lodged in a jail in Belgaum in Karnataka. Gang leader Veerappan was killed in an encounter with the Tamil Nadu police in October 2004.