Nearly a year after first dismissing a petition to commute Balwant Singh Rajoana's death sentence to life imprisonment in connection with the assassination of former Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh, the Supreme Court on September 25 agreed to hear the case afresh. The Court in connection to the contentious matter issued a notice to the Centre, the Punjab government, and the Chandigarh administration regarding the delay in deciding on Rajoana's mercy petition.
In a fresh notice, the apex Court bench, led by Justices BR Gavai, Prashant Kumar Mishra, and KV Viswanathan, ordered the Centre, Punjab governments, and the Chandigarh administration, to respond to the matter within four weeks.
This development follows after Rajoana, convicted in the murder of former Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh, sought his release due to the inordinate delay in disposing of his mercy petition by the Centre. Rajoana has been in prison for over 28 years, 17 of which he has served as a death row inmate, including 2.5 years in solitary confinement.
Supreme Court refuses to commute death sentence
It is important to note that this is the second time Rajoana has approached the apex court for relief. Earlier, in May 2023, the Court refused to commute his death sentence to life imprisonment, leaving the decision to the competent authority of the Central government to address the mercy petition.
However, in his new petition, Rajoana argued that "about 1 year and 4 months have now elapsed since the disposal of the petitioner’s first writ petition, and a decision on his fate still hangs under a cloud of uncertainty, causing deep mental trauma and anxiety to the petitioner every single living day, which by itself is sufficient ground for this court to exercise its Article 32 powers to grant the reliefs sought."
About the mercy plea
Rajoana, who has been in jail for 28 years, was sentenced to death in 2007 in connection with the assassination. He filed a mercy petition in 2012, but no decision has been made in the more than 12 years since, despite reports of the government deciding in 2019 to spare his life in commemoration of the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev Ji.
Earlier, in 2022, the Supreme Court during the hearings on Rajoana's matter, then orally observed that the Central government’s failure to resolve the matter appeared to be contemptuous. But, the Centre in connection to the matter were consistent with its stand that until last year, there was no representation from Rajoana regarding the commutation of his sentence.
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