Terrorist Devinderpal Singh Bhullar will not hang, says Supreme Court

New Delhi – A man convicted for a bomb blast in Delhi in which nine people were killed in 1993 will not hang, the Supreme Court said.

Devinderpal Singh Bhullar was convicted in 1993; he filed a clemency petition with the President of India in 2003 but it was rejected eight years later.

Requesting the Supreme Court to commute his death sentence, his family had said that he is mentally unfit and should not be hanged.

Last week, the union government told the top court that it has “no problem” with the 49-year-old being spared the death sentence.

In January this year, the Supreme Court stopped the 15 death row prisoners on the grounds that “inordinate and inexplicable” delays in hanging are grounds for reducing the penalty. (Supreme Court commutes 15 death sentences due to delays)

While commuting the death sentences in January, the Supreme Court had also said that mental illness such as schizophrenia and the use of solitary confinement could make a convict eligible for a reduced sentence.

The judges handling Mr Bhullar’s case had said that verdict could impact his case.