The Supreme Court on Monday commuted death sentence of 1993 Delhi blast convict Devinder Pal Singh Bhullar to life imprisonment. The apex court has commuted his sentence on two grounds - Bhullar was suffering mental illness and the court said that there has been inordinate delay of 8 years by government over his mercy plea. Bhullar's wife had filed a mercy plea on the ground of mental illness.
The apex court had on March 26, 2002 dismissed Bhullar's appeal against the death sentence awarded by a trial court in August 2001 and endorsed by the Delhi high court in 2002. He had filed a review petition which was also dismissed on December 17, 2002. Bhullar had then moved a curative petition which too had been rejected by the apex court on March 12, 2003. But after the the landmark judgement of January 21, the apex court agreed to hear the plea.
ALSO SEE SC stays execution of 1993 Delhi blast convict Devinderpal Singh Bhullar
Khalistan Liberation Force terrorist Bhullar was convicted and awarded death penalty for triggering a bomb blast in New Delhi in September 1993, which killed nine persons and injured 25 others, including then Youth Congress president M S Bitta.
The Supreme Court said that there has been inordinate delay of 8 years by government over Bhullar's mercy plea.
The apex court on January 21 had held that inordinate delay by government in deciding mercy plea of death row convicts can be a ground for commuting their sentence and had granted life to 15 condemned prisoners including four aides of forest brigand Veerappan.
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