Beant’s family to move SC against commutation of Rajoana’s death sentence

The family of slain Punjab chief minister Beant Singh will challenge the commutation of terrorist Balwant Singh Rajoana’s death sentence in the Supreme Court.

The family of slain Punjab chief minister Beant Singh will challenge the commutation of terrorist Balwant Singh Rajoana’s death sentence in the Supreme Court.

Confirming this, Punjab MLA and the slain leader’s grandson Gurkirat Kotli here on Tuesday told PTI, “We are taking a legal opinion on that. Most probably, we will challenge the Centre’s decision on the ground that Rajoana himself had never moved any mercy petition for the commutation of his death sentence.”

Rajoana was convicted for the assassination of Beant Singh on August 31, 1995.

The Union home ministry on Saturday had decided to commute the death sentence of Rajoana as a humanitarian gesture ahead of the 550th birth anniversary of Sikhism founder Guru Nanak Dev.

On Monday, Ludhiana MP Ravneet Singh Bittu, another grandson of Beant Singh, had questioned the decision, saying the dreaded terrorist should not be spared at any cost.

“”Who are they (Centre) to commute the death sentence to life term when the Supreme Court has given capital punishment (to Rajoana)?” “The BJP is indulging in petty politics to woo the Sikh voters despite the prime minister vowing to fight terrorism on a global platform,” he added.

Claiming that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah were playing with fire, he said, “My family suffered a lot with the killing of my grandfather but we are prepared for another battle and would not let the BJP push Punjab into dark days of terrorism.”