NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has announced it will consider the mercy petition of death row convict Balwant Singh Rajoana, who was convicted in the 1995 assassination case of then Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh, if the Centre does not decide on it "either way."
"Decide it either way or we will consider it (Rajoana's plea)," stated a three-judge bench led by Justice B.R. Gavai, addressing Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta, who represented the Centre. Mehta informed the court that Rajoana's mercy plea is pending with the President's office.
The bench also remarked, "No interim relief without hearing them (Punjab)," and subsequently deferred the hearing for two weeks.
The apex court was reviewing a plea filed by Rajoana, who has been on death row for 17 years, regarding the delay in deciding his mercy petition. Senior advocate and former Attorney General (AG) Mukul Rohatgi, representing Rajoana, argued, "At least let him out for six months. The mercy plea has been pending for the last 12 years. With great respect, I can say that there is a complete violation of Article 21. I am requesting some interim relief."
Rohatgi further asserted that this is a shocking case, highlighting that Rajoana has been in custody for 29 years and deserves to see what is outside.
In contrast, counsel for the Punjab government requested two additional weeks to file a counter affidavit, which the court granted.
The Supreme Court, after hearing from the respective parties, scheduled further proceedings for November 18. Both the Centre and the Punjab government were expected to present their positions regarding Rajoana's plea, seeking to have his death sentence commuted to life imprisonment. However, they did not do so, prompting the court to defer the hearing.
Rajoana, a former Punjab Police constable, has been imprisoned for over 28 years, awaiting execution. He contends that the Centre has failed to make a decision on his mercy petition, submitted on March 25, 2012.
The prosecution has stated that Beant Singh, the former Punjab Chief Minister, and 16 others were killed in an explosion outside the Civil Secretariat in Chandigarh on August 31, 1995.
Rajoana's plea highlights that he has spent more than 28 years in jail and 17 years on death row. His senior lawyer, Mukul Rohatgi, argued that keeping Rajoana on death row while delaying the decision on his mercy plea for such a long time constitutes a violation of his fundamental rights.
Rohatgi sought commutation of Rajoana's death sentence to life imprisonment, citing the case of another death row convict, Devender Pal Singh Bhullar, and asserting that "the delay caused by circumstances beyond the prisoners' control mandates commutation of death sentence," as the prolonged wait has adversely affected Rajoana's physical and mental health.
Opposing Rajoana's plea, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) K.M. Natraj, representing the Ministry of Home Affairs, contended that Rajoana's mercy petition cannot be considered as it was filed by the SGPC (Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee) and not by Rajoana himself.
He added that the petition cannot be decided until the appeals of other convicts have been resolved by the Supreme Court.
Although the apex court had previously refused to commute Rajoana's death penalty last year, it agreed on September 25 this year to re-examine the issue afresh.