Withdraw mercy plea, Balwant Singh Rajoana writes to Akal Takht Jathedar

Aman Sood

Patiala, November 7

Balwant Singh Rajoana today wrote to the Akal Takht Jathedar and appealed to him to intervene and withdraw his mercy petition, filed by the SGPC almost 12 years ago. Rajoana has threatened to go on hunger strike if the plea, which is pending with the President of India, is not withdrawn within the next 10 days.

In May, the Supreme Court had refused to commute the death sentence of former Chief Minister Beant Singh assassination case convict Balwant Singh Rajoana to life imprisonment and asked the Centre to take a further decision on his mercy plea as and when deemed necessary.

In a letter to Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Raghbir Singh, Rajoana said no one in Delhi and Punjab seemed to be bothered about the mercy plea, which has been pending for the last 12 years. “If it is not withdrawn in the next 7-10 days, I will be left with no option, but to go on hunger strike. For someone who has been in jail for the last 28 years and awaiting death penalty, going on hunger strike is sad,” reads the letter. Written from the Central Jail, Patiala,it states that, “My request to you is to ask the SGPC to withdraw my mercy plea.”

“The stand of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to defer the decision on the mercy petition is also a decision for the reasons given thereunder. It actually amounts to a decision declining to grant the same for the present,” a three-judge Bench had said.

“It is, however, directed that the competent authority in due course of time would again as and when deemed necessary, may deal with the mercy petition and take a further decision,” said the Bench, which had on March 2, reserved its verdict on Rajoana’s petition seeking commutation of his death penalty on the ground that the Centre had failed to take a decision on his March 25, 2012, mercy petition till date.