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In New Delhi today, a Supreme Court hearing took place to seek to commute the death sentence of Sikh political prisoner, Professor Devinder Pal Singh Bhullar, who has been on death row since 2001. In January this year, the Supreme Court commuted the death sentences of 15 convicts, on the grounds of 'inordinate delay' in carrying out the executions and also granted concession on the grounds of deteriorated mental health. At Professor Bhullar's last hearing on 31 January, the Supreme Court sought responses from the Government of India and requested a health status report from the Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences (IHBAS), where Professor Bhullar is being treated for mental ailments since 2010. Today, the Centre assured the Supreme Court that the death sentence will not be executed until it has taken a decision on the mercy plea on medical grounds. The Supreme Court bench, headed by Chief Justice P Sathasivam, asked the Centre to take a decision quickly as "delay of every day is torture for the convict". It has granted two weeks and the date for the next hearing has been scheduled for 10 March 2014. SOPW