- Devinder Pal Singh Bhullar
-
Devinder Pal Singh Bhullar Nationality India Known for Convicted terrorist of Khalistan Liberation Force Devinder Pal Singh Bhullar is a convict on death row in India. He was found guilty of killing 9 bystanders in a 1993 car bombing intended to kill Maninder Singh Bitta, and sentenced to death by hanging by split decision.[1] He is also a suspect in two other deadly terrorist attacks in India.[2]
Contents
1993 car bombing
On 11 September, 1993 a car bomb exploded outside the offices of the Indian Youth Congress on Raisina Road in New Delhi. The bomb used RDX as explosive, and was remote-controlled. 9 people were killed by the bomb. The Khalistan Liberation Force claimed responsibility for the attack. The primary target for the mid-day bombing was identified as Maninder Singh Bitta, a vocal critic of Khalistani separatists, who was leaving the Youth Congress offices in his car. Bitta survived the attack with shrapnel wounds to his chest. However, two of Bitta's body guards were killed.[1]
Bitta was also the target of an earlier 1992 bombing in Amritsar in which he lost a leg. 13 people were killed in the 1992 Amritsar bombing.
After investigation, authorities named Bhullar, a militant affiliated with the Khalistan Liberation Force, as the bomber responsible for the 1993 Raisina Road car bomb.
Extradition and conviction
After the bombing, Bhullar fled to Germany and sought political asylum. His asylum plea was rejected by the German government in 1995 and he was extradited back to India to face charges of terrorism.[3]
In India, Bhullar was prosecuted for the 1993 New Delhi car bombing. He is also a suspect in two other deadly terrorist incidents, including the 1992 Amritsar bombing, but those charges were not pursued due to lack of evidence. He was found guilty by the trial court and sentenced to death by hanging on 25 August, 2001.
His appeal against the conviction was dismissed by the Supreme Court of India on 27 December, 2006. His plea for clemency was rejected by the President of India in May 2011.
Campaign for clemency
Bhullar claimed as justification for the bombing that the Punjab Police had killed his best friends and fellow militants of the Khalistan Liberation Force. He also held the police responsible for the disapperance of his father in 1991.
His extradition was overturned in his absence by a higher German court in 1997 since he faced the possibility of a death sentence in India.
There have been numerous campaigns by sikhs in Canada to seek clemency for Bhullar.[2]
The group Europe for Freedom & Democracy made a request to the European Parliament to add to its agenda a motion for a resolution to call on India to abolish the death penalty and grant clemency to Bhullar.[4]
References
- ^ a b "A Car Bomb in New Delhi Kills 8 and Wounds 36". New York Times. 1993-09-12. http://www.nytimes.com/1993/09/12/world/a-car-bomb-in-new-delhi-kills-8-and-wounds-36.html. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
- ^ a b "Dhaliwal lobbies to save jailed terrorist from hanging". Vancouver Sun. 2003-04-03. http://www2.canada.com/vancouversun/features/airindia/story.html?id=69a9f9f8-15a1-42ff-9761-6e83b3c488b5. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
- ^ "Bhullar hanging: SC notice to Centre, Delhi govt". Zee News. http://zeenews.india.com/news/nation/bhullar-sc-issues-notice-to-centre-delhi-govt_718851.html. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
- ^ "Motion for a Resolution". Parliamento Europeo. http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?type=MOTION&reference=B7-2011-0395&language=ES. Retrieved 2011-08-26.
Categories:- People imprisoned on charges of terrorism
- Indian prisoners and detainees
- Living people
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