New Delhi, Oct 11 (PTI) The Supreme Court said on Tuesday a three-judge bench will hear on November 1 the plea by Balwant Singh Rajoana, convicted in the 1995 assassination case of Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh, seeking commutation of his death penalty to life imprisonment.

His plea for mercy is pending before the government for over a decade.

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Rajoana's counsel Mukul Rohatgi told a bench headed by Chief Justice U U Lalit that his client has been in jail for 26 years and he has a substantive case based on the judgements of the apex court that his rights under Article 21 of the Constitution (The right to protection of life and personal liberty) has been violated.

On September 28, the top court had expressed dissatisfaction over the Centre's failure to take a decision on Rajoana's plea for his death penalty be commuted to life imprisonment.

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During the hearing on Tuesday, Rohatgi insisted before the bench, also comprising Justices S R Bhat and Bela M Trivedi, that Rajoana is entitled to such commutation of penalty.

The bench noted the Centre had earlier referred to the pendency of an appeal filed by a co-accused in the Supreme Court against the life term awarded to him.

"…. supposing in case we acquit that man, who is on life sentence as of now, then the matter assumes a different complexion before the President. He may as well give you full pardon and let you off," the bench observed.

The apex court said it may list both the matters -- the pending appeal of the co-accused as well as Rajoana's plea -- for hearing on the same day.

Rohatgi, however, requested the bench for Rajoana's plea to be heard separately.

"I (Rajoana) do not want to be clubbed with this for the simple reason that I have spent 26 years in jail. I do not rely on their decision whether they will pardon me or not. I want to argue my case that I am entitled to be commuted to life imprisonment today," he said.

Rohatgi said Rajoana is in jail since January 1996 and his mercy petition was filed in March 2012.

He said his client is on death row since 2007.

The bench said it will list Rajoana's plea for hearing on November 1. "List before a bench of three-judges on November 1, 2022 for final disposal," it said.

The bench said, in the meanwhile, the authorities are at liberty to take appropriate action.

Rajoana has sought commutation of his death sentence to life imprisonment on the ground of his long incarceration of 26 years.

The top court had on May 2 asked the Centre to decide within two months on the commutation plea filed on behalf of Rajoana.

Later, in terms of a letter of July 27, 2022, circulated by the counsel for the Centre, the matter was adjourned to September 13.

Earlier, the apex court did not consider the submission of the Centre that Rajoana has been on record saying "he has no faith in the Indian judiciary and the Constitution".

It had said the pendency of appeals of other co-accused in the case will not come in the way of the authorities deciding Rajoana's mercy plea.

The top court had also questioned the Centre over the delay in sending Rajoana's mercy petition to the President.

It had asked the government to apprise it as to when the authorities concerned will send the proposal to the President under Article 72 of the Constitution which deals with the powers of the President to grant pardon, suspend, remit or commute sentences in certain cases.

Rajoana, a former Punjab Police constable, was convicted of involvement in an explosion outside the Punjab civil secretariat that killed Beant Singh and 16 others on August 31, 1995.

A special court sentenced him to death in July 2007.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)