SC Agrees To Hear In Open Court Bhullar’s Plea Against Death

NEW DELHI – The Supreme Court onTuesday agreed to hear in an open courtthe plea of Khalistan Liberation Forceterrorist Devinder Pal Singh Bhullar forcommutation of death sentence awardedto him for the September 1993 blast tolife imprisonment. A bench comprisingChief Justice P Sathasivam and justices RM Lodha, H L Dattu and S JMukhopadhaya decided to hear the curativepetition filed by Bhullar’s wifeNevneet Kaur on Friday.The hearing inthe open court assumes importance inview of the January 21 judgment of fivejudgeconstitutional bench holding thatinordinate and inexplicable delay by governmentin deciding mercy plea of deathrow convicts can be a ground for commutingtheir sentence. Bhullar’s wife filedthe petition for a re-look against the apexcourt verdict which had rejected her pleato commute his death sentence to lifeimprisonment on grounds of delay onthe part of the government in decidinghis mercy plea. Bhullar was convictedand awarded death penalty for triggeringa bomb blast in New Delhi in September1993, which killed nine persons andinjured 25 others, including then YouthCongress president M S Bitta.