A conundrum for BJP while Balwant Singh Rajoana’s mercy plea hearing continues in SC

On August 31, 1995, Beant Singh and 16 others were killed aft erstwhile Punjab Police constable Dilawar Singh blew himself up astatine the entranceway of the civilian secretariat successful Chandigarh. Rajoana was the backup bomber and the 1 who tied the bombs to Dilawar’s body. He was caught successful December 1995 and truthful was his co-accused Lakhwinder Singh, some erstwhile constabulary constables similar Dilawar. The 3 were sympathetic to the views of Babbar Khalsa International, with Rajoana justifying the assassination by blaming Beant Singh for “extra-judicial” killings of the Sikh youth.

While Singh is presently serving a beingness sentence, a peculiar CBI tribunal sentenced Rajoana to decease successful 2007. On August 10, 2009, helium asked the Punjab and Haryana High Court’s Chief Justice for his decease punishment lawsuit to beryllium considered abstracted from that of his co-accused, who challenged the condemnation by the proceedings court. Rajoana, who had refused to prosecute a lawyer during trial, said the decease condemnation “for this enactment is justice” and a “blessing”, and refused to bow earlier specified a “worthless system”.

His execution was scheduled for March 31, 2012, but pursuing protests crossed Punjab, the authorities authorities astatine the time, led by the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and the BJP, convinced the Congress-led Union authorities to postpone the execution. The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) filed a mercy petition earlier the President connected March 28 and the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) stopped the execution.

Rajoana doubly went connected a hunger onslaught successful Patiala Central Jail, archetypal successful 2016 and past successful 2018, demanding a determination connected the SGPC’s mercy petition.

Just earlier the 550th commencement day of Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the MHA connected September 27 wrote to the main secretaries of Punjab, Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, NCT of Delhi, and the advisor to Chandigarh Administrator saying, “I americium directed to accidental that connected the juncture of commemoration of 550th Birth Anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the Government of India has decided that 8 Sikh prisoners whitethorn beryllium granted peculiar remission and decease condemnation of 1 Sikh captive whitethorn beryllium commuted to beingness imprisonment. The details of these 9 Sikh prisoners are fixed astatine Annexure.”

The missive and annexe, marked “SECRET”, were purportedly signed by past Deputy Secretary (PR & ATC) Arun Sobti. In the three-page annexe, the lawsuit of Rajoana was categorised connected the past leafage arsenic “Case of Commutation of Death Sentence to Life Imprisonment”.

However, determination was nary authoritative announcement from the MHA. A period later, erstwhile Beant Singh’s grandson and existent Union Minister of State Ravneet Singh Bittu, who is present successful the BJP but was past a Congress MP, asked Amit Shah wherefore Rajoana’s condemnation was being commuted, the Union location curate told the House, “Please don’t spell by media reports. Koi maafi ki nahi gayi (no pardon has been given).”

At the time, the SAD, past a BJP ally, and the SGPC expressed disappointment astatine Shah’s statement. Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal said the remark had caused “pain and anguish to the Sikh community, which was nether the content that the decease condemnation had been commuted to beingness connected the eve of 550th Parkash Purb celebrations of Sri Guru Nanak Dev”.

SGPC’s president astatine the time, Gobind Singh Longowal said, “Changing the determination was precise unfortunate; (it) has wounded Sikh sentiments.”

In November 2022, the Supreme Court’s bid to merchandise the six convicts serving beingness condemnation for much than 3 decades successful the Rajiv Gandhi assassination lawsuit rekindled anticipation for Rajoana’s supporters. However, the apical tribunal successful April 2023 refused to intervene successful the substance and said the competent authorization could woody with his mercy plea.

In December 2023, the mercy plea contented was raised again In Parliament, though not directly, during a terse speech betwixt Shah and erstwhile Union Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal of the Akali Dal. The Akali Dal had breached ties with the BJP during the yearlong farmers’ agitation from 2020 to 2021.

During a statement connected the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Badal objected to the caller transgression instrumentality codification not allowing anybody, but family, to record mercy pleas for a convict. In response, Shah said, “If immoderate offender does not realise his oregon her mistake, explicit remorse, past helium oregon she does not merit forgiveness. Only they merit mercy who repent their crime. If idiosyncratic commits a panic act, goes to jailhouse and is not acceptable to admit to the crime, past I volition not hold with immoderate mercy successful specified a case.” When Badal attempted to intervene, Shah said helium knew what she had to say.

The ‘Bandi Singhs’

Rajoana is possibly the astir high-profile “Bandi Singh”, a word utilized for Sikh prisoners convicted for engagement successful militancy successful Punjab and are inactive successful jails successful assorted parts of India. Their merchandise is an emotive contented successful Punjab, with the activists pushing for it pointing retired that these prisoners had already spent a fewer decades successful jails and respective of them are aged oregon “physically oregon mentally infirm”.

The request for their merchandise has flared up clip and again, becoming a governmental contented that mainstream parties successful the authorities cannot disregard due to the fact that they request Panthic votes. Last year, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-led authorities faced demonstrations and activists protesting astatine the Chandigarh-Mohali borderline besides clashed with the police.

“The request for the merchandise of Sikh prisoners is wrong the scope of the Constitution,” said SGPC president Harjinder Singh Dhami. “The cardinal authorities has besides approved it done its notification successful 2019 connected the juncture of the 550th Prakash Gurpurab (birth anniversary) of Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji. The authorities should instrumentality its notification.”

The BJP, looking to grow its Punjab footprint, has besides appeared to enactment the request adjacent though it poses a situation to the enactment extracurricular the authorities due to the fact that it cannot look to beryllium going brushed connected Sikh militancy. That excessively astatine a clip erstwhile India’s diplomatic ties with Canada person deed stone bottommost implicit the contented of Sikh separatism and the sidesplitting of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

But home governmental considerations successful Punjab person forced it to nonstop signals that not each of its leaders are opposed to releasing the “Bandi Singhs”. In February 2022, past Union curate Gajendra Singh Shekhawat promised helium would instrumentality up the contented of their merchandise with the apical authorities officials.

Bittu, who wrote a two-page missive to Prime Minister Narendra Modi successful 2022 saying the merchandise of Rajoana and different “dreaded terrorists” would person devastating implications for the interior information concern successful Punjab, has besides moderated his presumption since joining the BJP up of the Lok Sabha elections and becoming a Union Minister. After the polls, helium said helium had nary objection to the Bandi Singhs being released and if the Centre planned to merchandise Rajoana would not reason it. It was clip to determination connected for bid successful Punjab, Bittu added.