(Says all Sikh prisoners who had completed the equivalent of a life sentence should be released to fulfill the union govt’s promise made on eve of 550th Parkash Purb of Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji)
Chandigarh: Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) President Sukhbir Singh Badal today urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to intervene and ensure the expeditious release of Bhai Balwant Singh Rajoana to fulfill the promise made to the Sikh community to release eight Sikh prisoners who have served more than the effective equivalent of a life sentence on the eve of the 550th Parkash Purb celebrations of Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji in 2019.
While calling for the release of all such Sikh prisoners, the SAD President urged the Prime Minister to intervene and expedite the matter of clemency of Bhai Rajoana with the competent authority to commute the death penalty awarded to him and ensure his release at the earliest. The union government had approved the commutation of Bhai Rajoana’s death sentence to life imprisonment as a humanitarian gesture in 2019.
Mr Sukhbir Badal said the issue warranted the urgent attention of the Prime Minister since a clemency petition under Article 72 of the Constitution of India which was filed by the SGPC in March 25, 2012 was still pending with the President. He said the Supreme Court had also issued a notice to the union government to take a call on the mercy petition of Bhai Rajoana by April 30.
Mr Badal asserted in his communication that he was hopeful that the Prime Minister would appreciate that there was no rationale to keep Bhai Rajoana behind bars when the union government had commuted his death sentence. He said the Sikh prisoner had already been incarcerated in prison for 26 years which was much longer than the effective duration of a life term.
The SAD President also apprised the Prime Minister that the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) had submitted a resolution to the union government to request for commuting Bhai Rajoana’s death sentence to life term and later for his release. He said the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), which managed Sikh shrines and whose members were elected by the Sikh ‘sangat’ in a democratic manner, had also submitted representations on similar lines to the union government.
Mr Badal also communicated that the erstwhile SAD led government has been consistently demanding justice for Bhai Rajoana. He said the erstwhile SAD led government had not only expressed its strong resistance against the judicial orders to hang Bhai Rajoana but then chief minister Sardar Parkash Singh Badal even refused to carry out these orders.
Mr Badal also conveyed that Sikhs worldwide desired that Bhai Rajoana be released and they were looking up to the Prime Minister to ensure the promise made to the community on the eve of the 550th Parkash Purb celebrations of Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji was fulfilled. The SAD President also made a similar plea to union home minister Amit Shah.
