CHANDIGARH: The Ministry of Home Affairs decision to commute the death sentence of Babbar Khalsa militant Balwant Singh Rajoana-the assassin of former Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh to life imprisonment, is to be challenged by the late CM’s family in the Supreme Court.
MLA of Payal constituency Gurkirat Singh Kotli, grandson of the late CM, said “We will challenge the Centre’s decision and are taking legal opinion. One of the grounds will be that Rajoana himself had not apologised and had never moved any mercy petition for commuting his death sentence.’’
Ludhiana MP and another grandson of the late CM, Ravneet Singh Bittu, also criticised the proposal.
Former CM Beant Singh and sixteen others were killed in a bomb blast outside the Punjab Civil Secretariat in August 1995.
In July 2007 a special court awarded death sentence to Rajoana, along with other terrorist Jagtar Singh Hawara.
However, in 2012 the Union Government had stayed his hanging, which was slated for March 31, 2012.