Amid the Punjab Government’s demand for release of State’s prisoners including the convicts in former Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh’s assassination case, the Centre on Thursday ruled out the possibility of leniency towards heinous criminals but indicated that legal opinion could be taken in select cases involving old persons and those who have completed 20 years sentence.
Releasing terrorists convicted for charges like the assassination of the former CM is ruled out, Union Home Ministry officials said here after Punjab’s Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal met Home Minister Rajnath Singh with the demand.
“There is no question of softening of stand in terror cases. No commitment has been given to Badal on releasing any prisoner. There is no question of releasing people like those who were convicted for killing Beant Singh,” an official said.
“However, selected cases may be legally examined. Ways may be explored to examine legally the possibility of releasing those who have completed at least 20 years in prison,” the official further said.
The official said the Government cannot release someone convicted for a serious crime like assassination of Beant Singh at a time when Thailand arrested a fugitive Sikh terrorist following India’s persistent request.
Gurmeet Singh alias Jagtar ‘Tara’ Singh, former member of the Babbar Khalsa International, was arrested in the eastern province of Chon Buri in Thailand on January 5. He had been convicted for life for his involvement in the assassination of Beant Singh along with 17 others in 1995 but he had escaped from a prison in Chandigarh.
Sukhbir, who was accompanied by SGPC president Avtar Singh Makkar and SAD’s leader in Parliament Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa, presented representations to the Home Minister for the release on ‘humanitarian grounds’ the prisoners who have completed their jail term.
In his letter to the Chief Ministers of Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Karnataka, Rajasthan and Gujarat, Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had sought pre-mature release on ‘humanitarian grounds’ of 13 terrorists, including lakhwinder Singh, Shamsher Singh and Gurmeet Singh, who are serving life sentence for assassination of Beant Singh and one convicted for bomb blast in September 1993 in which nine people were killed and 25 others, including then Youth Congress president MS Bitta, were injured.