Now Reading: Punjab CM seeks parole for Beant Singh killer on humanitarian grounds
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Punjab CM seeks parole for Beant Singh killer on humanitarian grounds
Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann on Saturday wrote to governor Gulab Chand Kataria, seeking 10-day parole for Jagtar Singh Hawara, convicted in the 1995 assassination of former chief minister Beant Singh, to…
The Story in Brief
Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann on Saturday wrote to governor Gulab Chand Kataria, seeking 10-day parole for Jagtar Singh Hawara, convicted in the 1995 assassination of former chief minister Beant Singh, to meet his ailing 81-year-old mother. Mann urged the governor, also the Chandigarh administrator, to consider the request on humanitarian and family grounds, stating Hawara’s presence could be important for his mother’s care.
The move follows a Punjab and Haryana high court direction last month to decide on Hawara’s parole plea within a time-bound manner. Mann’s intervention comes after the Akal Takht declared him ‘anti-Guru’ and ‘anti-Panth’, while the release of long-incarcerated Sikh prisoners remains a demand among sections of the Sikh community. Hawara is serving life imprisonment at Delhi’s Mandoli jail.
The Indian Opinion
Mann’s letter restokes the old tussle between Sikh political demands and the state’s anti-terror record. Some call it compassion for a convict’s aged mother; others see it as pandering to hardliners to regain Sikh support. The high court and governor will now weigh sympathy against national security, and the final parole decision, due in six weeks, will show whether human tragedy can trump political red lines without setting a precedent.
Source: hindustantimes.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
