The Supreme Court has instructed the President’s Secretary to present Balwant Singh’s mercy petition, who was found guilty of killing former Punjab Chief Minister Beant, to the President and ask for a decision within two weeks. In 1995, the Chief Minister at the time, Beant Singh, was killed in a brutal manner.
A panel consisting of Justices B R Gavai, P K Mishra and K V Vishwanathan urged the President to review the petition in a span of two weeks. The court noted that even though today was the scheduled day for the case hearing, no representative from the Union of India showed up. The bench was positioned solely to listen to this case.
The bench stated that during the previous hearing, the case was postponed in order for the Central Government to seek guidance from the President’s Office on the decision of the mercy petition. Taking into consideration that the petitioner is at risk of receiving capital punishment, we instruct the Secretary to the President of India to present the issue to the President and ask him to review it within a two-week timeframe starting today. The court announced that the next hearing in the case is scheduled for December 5.
In reality, the event took place on the 31st of August 1995 when Chief Minister Beant Singh was in the Secretariat as per his routine. He was heading out to do some tasks. Just as he was getting into his car after leaving the Secretariat, a Punjab Police Jawan named Dilawar Singh Babbar, who was present, exploded the bomb attached to himself. This explosion resulted in the deaths of seventeen individuals, including the Chief Minister. The sight was so excruciating that it was hard to observe. The bodies were ripped apart on each of their four sides.
Seeing was a challenging task. The bodies were ripped apart in every direction.
In 2007, Balwant Singh Rajoana was given the death penalty for his role in the murder. There were accusations against 15 individuals in this matter. Jagtar Singh Hawara and Balwant Singh Rajoana received the death penalty. In addition, Gurmeet Singh, Lakhwinder Singh, Shamsher Singh were given life imprisonment as punishment. The trial court acquitted two individuals who were accused. Rajoana used to be a constable in Punjab Police and was also involved in bombing for Babbar Khalsa. Shiromani Akali Dal was calling for the liberation of Rajoana.
The Supreme Court declined to reduce Rajoana’s sentence last year. He has spent 27 years behind bars. In 2012, the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee successfully appealed to delay his execution.
In 2020, Rajoana submitted a plea to the Supreme Court, alleging that the government had made a decision to decrease his sentence. Following this, the Minister of Home informed the House that there has been no decision made. At the same time, Hawara, a different prisoner held in Tihar, was named the Jathedar of Akal Takht. Still, the Shiromani Akali Dal has not acknowledged it. The Punjab and Haryana High Court changed Hawara’s death penalty to life imprisonment. He has also requested for a decrease in the length of his sentence.
In Beant Singh’s administration, the police were granted complete freedom to eradicate the Khalistanis. When former GDP KPS Gill initiated a mission to eradicate terrorists, numerous terrorists began escaping to different nations. Following this incident, Babbar Khalsa International planned to assassinate him.