NEW DELHI, India—The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) of India Plans to go against the commutation of death sentence of Prof. Devinderpal Singh Bhullar, despite the fact that he suffers poor mental health.
The MHA must submit a reply in the Supreme Court (SC) on March, 10,2014, to answer a mercy plea lodged by Prof. Bhullar’s wife Navneet Kaur Bhullar. The MHA has determined to stand against commutation of his sentence to life imprisonment. MHA told the apex court that Prof. Bhullar will not be executed in his present condition of deteriorating health.
The Center had also recently moved in the SC to oppose the commutation of death sentences of three prisoners who murdered Rajiv Gandhi on grounds of the delay in making a decision regarding their mercy petition.
“Besides Rajiv Gandhi’s killers, we have moved [the] SC against commutation of death sentences of 15 people… In Bhullar’s case we are going to stick to [our] stand, the only consideration being his deteriorating health,” said an official.
Last January, Delhi’s Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung advocated commutation of Bhullar’s death sentence to a life term, on the basis of human ethics, and natural justice.
