Jump to content

Amnesty wants death penalty "moratorium" amid Sikh protests


Recommended Posts

Amnesty wants death penalty "moratorium" amid Sikh protests

PTI

London, April 16, 2013

Amid protests by UK-based Sikhs against the death sentence of Delhi bomb blast accused Devinderpal Singh Bhullar, a prominent human rights group has called on the Indian government to establish a "moratorium" on capital punishment.

As hundreds of Sikh protesters sporting pro-Khalistan banners gathered outside the Indian High Commission in London Monday to voice their protest against the death sentence awarded to Delhi bomb blast accused Bhullar, London-based Amnesty International warned that India was in danger of alienating itself on the world stage.

"We renew our call to the Indian government to establish a moratorium on executions. The way mercy petitions are being rejected is a cause for concern. As a global player, just political or economic achievements are not enough. India must be seen as an upholder of human rights in the world," Chiara Sangiorgio, Amnesty campaigner and death penalty expert, told PTI.

"The hanging of Ajmal Kasab (2008 Mumbai attacks accused) last year, the first since 2004, was a big setback to the country's own record of leniency and one of the most shocking developments of 2012. India had been seen as an inspiration in the region and any further hangings will be extremely regressive," she added.

Parliament attack accused Afzal Guru was also hanged, earlier this year.

The Supreme Court had upheld Bhullar's death sentence on Friday, rejecting a 12-year appeal against his conviction for plotting the 1993 car bombing in New Delhi that killed nine people.

Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal has now urged Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to commute the death sentence to life in prison over fears of wider protests in the state which endured a brutal separatist insurgency in the 1980s.

Amnesty echoed concerns over the manner in which the last execution, that of Guru, was carried out and warned against a repeat of similar secrecy that might trigger unrest.

"International standards require a notification to the family lawyers and the wider public. The process must be seen to be transparent to ensure all safeguards are followed and a proper informed debate can take place," added Sangiorgio, among the authors of Amnesty's recent death penalty report for 2012 which was highly critical of India's record on the issue.

The report said, India along with Japan and Pakistan, resumed executions in 2012 after long periods when these countries were execution-free.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
 Share

  • advertisement_alt
  • advertisement_alt
  • advertisement_alt


  • Topics

  • Posts

    • yeh it's true, we shouldn't be lazy and need to learn jhatka shikaar. It doesn't help some of grew up in surrounding areas like Slough and Southall where everyone thought it was super bad for amrit dharis to eat meat, and they were following Sant babas and jathas, and instead the Singhs should have been normalising jhatka just like the recent world war soldiers did. We are trying to rectifiy this and khalsa should learn jhatka.  But I am just writing about bhog for those that are still learning rehit. As I explained, there are all these negative influences in the panth that talk against rehit, but this shouldn't deter us from taking khanda pahul, no matter what level of rehit we are!
    • How is it going to help? The link is of a Sikh hunter. Fine, but what good does that do the lazy Sikh who ate khulla maas in a restaurant? By the way, for the OP, yes, it's against rehit to eat khulla maas.
    • Yeah, Sikhs should do bhog of food they eat. But the point of bhog is to only do bhog of food which is fit to be presented to Maharaj. It's not maryada to do bhog of khulla maas and pretend it's OK to eat. It's not. Come on, bro, you should know better than to bring this Sakhi into it. Is this Sikh in the restaurant accompanied by Guru Gobind Singh ji? Is he fighting a dharam yudh? Or is he merely filling his belly with the nearest restaurant?  Please don't make a mockery of our puratan Singhs' sacrifices by comparing them to lazy Sikhs who eat khulla maas.
    • Seriously?? The Dhadi is trying to be cute. For those who didn't get it, he said: "Some say Maharaj killed bakras (goats). Some say he cut the heads of the Panj Piyaras. The truth is that they weren't goats. It was she-goats (ਬਕਰੀਆਂ). He jhatka'd she-goats. Not he-goats." Wow. This is possibly the stupidest thing I've ever heard in relation to Sikhi.
    • Instead of a 9 inch or larger kirpan, take a smaller kirpan and put it (without gatra) inside your smaller turban and tie the turban tightly. This keeps a kirpan on your person without interfering with the massage or alarming the masseuse. I'm not talking about a trinket but rather an actual small kirpan that fits in a sheath (you'll have to search to find one). As for ahem, "problems", you could get a male masseuse. I don't know where you are, but in most places there are professional masseuses who actually know what they are doing and can really relieve your muscle pains.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Terms of Use