The Supreme Court will hear Balwant Singh Rajoana’s plea seeking commutation of his death sentence due to over a decade-long delay in deciding his mercy petition. Rajoana, convicted in the 1995 assassination of former Punjab CM Beant Singh, has spent more than 15 years on death row.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday fixed March 18 for hearing the plea filed by Balwant Singh Rajoana, who has been convicted in the 1995 assassination of former Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh. Rajoana has approached the Court seeking commutation of his death sentence to life imprisonment, mainly on the ground of an inordinate delay in deciding his mercy petition.
A bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta and N. V. Anjaria adjourned the case after the counsel appearing for the Union government requested more time.
Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, representing Rajoana, reminded the Court that in its earlier order dated September 24, 2025, it had clearly observed that no further adjournment at the instance of the respondents would be entertained. Despite this submission, the bench directed, “List on March 18.”
The case relates to the assassination of Beant Singh, who was killed along with 16 others in a powerful blast at the entrance of the civil secretariat in Chandigarh on August 31, 1995.
The incident had shaken Punjab at a time when the state was recovering from militancy-related violence. In July 2007, a special court sentenced Rajoana to death for his role in the conspiracy and execution of the attack.
Rajoana has now spent over 29 years in custody, including more than 15 years as a death row convict. His plea highlights the long delay in the disposal of his mercy petition as a key ground for seeking relief.
In March 2012, the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) filed a mercy petition on his behalf under Article 72 of the Constitution, which empowers the President to grant pardons, reprieves or commutations.
The Supreme Court had earlier directed the Central government to take a decision on the mercy petition. However, the Union government informed the Court that the matter was sensitive and remained under consideration.
In September 2024, the top court sought responses from the Centre, the Punjab government and the Union Territory of Chandigarh administration on Rajoana’s plea seeking commutation.
Significantly, on May 3, 2023, the Supreme Court had declined to commute his death sentence and had observed that the competent authority could take a decision on the mercy petition. Despite that order, the mercy plea has not yet been finally decided.
In his fresh petition, Rajoana has again urged the Court to commute his death sentence to life imprisonment, pointing out that he has undergone 28.8 years of imprisonment, including over 15 years on death row. He has relied on the prolonged delay in deciding his mercy petition as a violation of his fundamental rights.
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The plea also refers to an April 2023 Supreme Court direction issued in another matter, where all states and competent authorities were asked to decide pending mercy petitions expeditiously and without inordinate delay. Rajoana has argued that despite such clear directions, his mercy petition has remained pending for more than a decade.
The matter is now scheduled to be heard on March 18, when the Supreme Court will consider the arguments on whether the prolonged delay in deciding the mercy plea justifies commuting the death sentence to life imprisonment.
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