Former Punjab Dgp Says Bhullar Deserves Clemency

[WaljinderSingh]

JALANDHAR: Devinder Pal Singh Bhullar, the death-row convict whose plea seeking commutation of his death sentence to life imprisonment was recently turned down by the Supreme Court, has received support from an unexpected quarter: former Punjab and Maharashtra DGP SS Virk.

Virk told TOI on Friday that Bhullar was not guilty of what he was being accused of. Bhullar was convicted for the 1993 Delhi bomb blastthat killed nine people.

"Bhullar not only should be given clemency for spending 18 years in jail, but he also deserves justice as he and his family have been wronged," said Virk. "I fought terrorism almost my entire professional life but I firmly believe that it is my duty to speak out if injustice is being done."

Virk said he had studied Bhullar's case and it belonged to the rarest-of-the-rare category. "Bhullar was awarded death penalty despite a split judgment in this case," he said. "The presiding judge of the Supreme Court bench, Justice MB Shah, had acquitted Bhullar and there was no clinching evidence against him except his 'confession' in police custody."

Virk said even former militants had vouched for Bhullar's innocence. "A number of ex-terrorists, who later joined the mainstream, had told me that Bhullar had refused to participate in any terror-related activity even when he was in hiding after his father and uncle were picked up by the police and eliminated," he said. "From these queries, a picture of a well-educated young engineering teacher emerged, not that of a dreaded militant he was made out to be."

Virk, a Maharashtra-cadre IPS officer who retired in 2009, received the Padma Shri for fighting militancy in Punjab. A terrorist's bullet had hit him in the jaw at the Golden Temple in Amritsar in 1988

On April 12 the Supreme Court had dismissed Bhullar's petition seeking commutation of his death sentence.

A Delhi court had convicted Bhullar for the 1993 bombing and sentenced him to death in 2001; in 2011 then President Partibha Patil had rejected his mercy plea.

Three days ago, on May 7, Bhullar's wife Navneet Kaur Bhullar had moved the apex court, requesting a stay on his execution.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Former-Punjab-DGP-says-Bhullar-deserves-clemency/articleshow/19994378.cms?intenttarget=no

[SevadaarEKhalsa]

Doesn't sound right, he was a human rights abuser himself...

[lsingh]

I think some of the human rights abusers are trying to slightly distance themselves form past crimes as people become more aware of what they have done. The recent refusal by Granthis to do their funeral Bhogs probably has some impact on them. Interesting that Virks family is split in to a panthic side , some of his past relatives took part in the Gurdwara reform protests in the 1920's, whilst he is in the Govt servants side of the family.

[GPS]

Doesn't sound right, he was a human rights abuser himself...

Absolutely on spot. He is one of the main abusers.Now he is not in chair and facing corruption charges.

He was right hand man of rebeiro and then Gill. He is the man who was shot in the face by Singhs in Harmandir

sahib vicinity by Painta. He is the one who was declaring cats as dead when they were alive and kept under another

name. Case of cat sukhi was his creation and he agreed to it.

[chatanga]

Virk said even former militants had vouched for Bhullar's innocence. "A number of ex-terrorists, who later joined the mainstream, had told me that Bhullar had refused to participate in any terror-related activity even when he was in hiding after his father and uncle were picked up by the police and eliminated," [/size]

Straight from the devils's mouth, that the ravan sena aka panjab police were killing people in false encounters.

[Mehtab Singh]

Meanwhile......

Tihar jail authorities procure hanging ropes but officials deny execution plans

New Delhi, India (May 12, 2013): According to a Daily Mail UK (India) news: “[t]he Tihar jail procuring two hanging ropes from Buxar in Bihar has set off speculation over who is the next in line to be hanged”.

“Officials, however, deny any execution plan”, Daily Mail has reported.

According to the news report the last time such a hanging rope was brought to Tihar jail was when Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru was to be hanged and that time the execution had reportedly taken place three months after the rope was procured.

“The man most likely to be hanged if an execution is ordered is Youth Congress office blast case convict Devender Pal Singh Bhullar” Daily Mail has reported.

Professor Devender Pal Singh Bhullar, a Sikh political prisoner faces imminent threat of execution in India.

Convicted solely on the basis of a confession extracted though torture in police custody, Prof. Bhullar has been on death row since 2001. Indian executive and judiciary has recently cleared the execution of death sentence in his case.

Though there is strong opposition to Prof. Bhullar’s hanging from various quarters with in and outside India, but the recent reports suggest that the hanging in this case seems inevitable.

Sikhs are viewing suspected execution of Prof. Bhullar as a political murder by Indian state that is going to be committed under the directions from Judiciary.

Akali Dal Panch Pardhani (ADPP) leader Bhai Mandhir Singh said: “[t]he decision of Indian state to kill Prof. Devender Pal Singh Bhullar is a clear sign that Sikhs are slaves in India”.

“No argument, no appeal has worked in this case because the arguments of politically subjugated communities carry no weightage in the eyes of occupants” he added.

He said that the recent decision of Indian state clearing execution of Prof. Bhullar has made reaffirms that the cycle to state violence against Sikhs in India is not going to stop, unless the political subjugation is overthrown.

http://www.sikhsiyasat.net/2013/05/12/tihar-jail-authorities-procure-hanging-ropes-but-officials-deny-execution-plans/

[lsingh]

Even though Virk is a major human rights violator his statement that Prof Bhullar is innocent is a major development. As one KP Gills people the Indian Govt should accept his statement. They can hardly call him a Khalistani or somebody who does not know the Punjab situation in detail. Have any of the Sikh organisations taken this forward?

Virk has an ongoing feud with the Badals and Sumedh Saini where they have tried to get each other convicted on corruption charges. This statement is more to embarrass Badal and Saini then any sudden change in Virks view on human rights

[GPS]

They will accept nothing. The devil party wants right wing Hindu votes.

If they go ahead they will be digging their own grave for ultimate burial.

They hanged afzal Guru without any information to his family and did not

give dead body to them. They did it as BJP was demanding and they timed

it for elections.

What kind of democracy is this.

Can virk tell people how many fake encounters he had staged.

[lsingh]

Some background where Virk is on one side and the Badals and Sumedh Saini on the other.The evidence form such a senior officer stating that Prof Bhullar is innocent should be taken forward by the Indian President and Supreme Court.

Indian Express

Investigations against former Punjab DGP Virk not fair: HC

RAGHAV OHRIPosted online: Wed May 01 2013, 03:44 hrs

Chandigarh : In 2008, the Punjab and Haryana High Court disbanded a team — headed by Surinder Pal Singh — probing the disproportionate assets case against former Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) S S Virk. The reason: Surinder Pal Singh had been working under the direct supervision of Sumedh Singh Saini, the then director of the Punjab Vigilance Bureau. Removing Singh and disbanding the team, the Court had ordered that a fresh team should be constituted under the direct supervision of principal secretary (home).

Now, in a serious embarrassment for the Punjab Police and its top officer, DGP Sumedh Singh Saini, the High Court has held that the current investigations against Virk are “not fair and impartial.” The reason: Paramraj Singh Umranangal, the present investigating officer is “facing an inquiry,” which is pending with DGP Saini.

The High Court has termed this as a violation of its 2008 orders. It, however, dismissed Virk’s petition demanding that Umranangal be removed as the investigating officer. The Court reasoned that since a similar petition is pending in the Supreme Court, it would “unjustified” to intervene in the matter. Justice Daya Chaudhary, however, has given Virk the liberty to approach the Court “if necessity so arises at a proper stage.”

The former DGP had petitioned the high court demanding the removal of IPS officer Umranangal as the investigating officer of the case since he (Umranangal) is facing an inquiry in a fake encounter case. Virk had been booked in a disproportionate assets case by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau in 2007, when DGP Saini incharge of the Vigilance Bureau.

In his petition, Virk had alleged that the case was “malafide and due to personal enmity” with Sumedh Singh Saini. He had requested the Court to direct Punjab to appoint an investigation officer, who had a clean record and had no inquiry pending against him.

The former DGP had argued that the state government had deliberately handpicked an officer, facing enquiry, to ensure an adverse report against him (Virk) and consequently “reward” the officer with a clean chit in his inquiry.

“The investigation conducted by the present Investigating Officer is not fair and impartial as he is facing an inquiry of fake encounter pending with the present Punjab DGP and the same is in violation of directions issued by this Court”, reads the High Court order, made available on Tuesday.

In 2008, a single Bench had held that it would be “desirable” to entrust investigations in the case to another team under the direct supervision of the principal secretary (home) so that “people may have faith in the administration of justice".

[lsingh]

DGP Virk has said that present Punjab Chief Sumedh Saini is responsible for Prof Bhullars father and Massars murder and that Prof Bhullar is innocent.

News report covers this