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| Appeals in India over Rajoana hanging | Appeals in India over Rajoana hanging |
| (about 4 hours later) | |
| Efforts have intensified in India's Punjab state to save Balwant Singh Rajoana, a prisoner on death row for his role in the 1995 murder of then state Chief Minister Beant Singh. | Efforts have intensified in India's Punjab state to save Balwant Singh Rajoana, a prisoner on death row for his role in the 1995 murder of then state Chief Minister Beant Singh. |
| Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal is due to meet President Pratibha Patil to seek clemency for Rajoana. | Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal is due to meet President Pratibha Patil to seek clemency for Rajoana. |
| Several opposition parties and Sikh groups have called a strike demanding a halt to the impending execution. | Several opposition parties and Sikh groups have called a strike demanding a halt to the impending execution. |
| A Chandigarh court on Tuesday ordered the hanging to take place on Saturday. | A Chandigarh court on Tuesday ordered the hanging to take place on Saturday. |
| Rajoana, who was sentenced in 2007, has not appealed against the sentence, although other convicted co-conspirators have had their death sentences reduced on appeal. | Rajoana, who was sentenced in 2007, has not appealed against the sentence, although other convicted co-conspirators have had their death sentences reduced on appeal. |
| If carried out, the execution would be the first in India since 2004. | If carried out, the execution would be the first in India since 2004. |
| Tight security | Tight security |
| Speaking to reporters, Mr Badal said he would meet President Patil and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday and seek clemency for Rajoana. | Speaking to reporters, Mr Badal said he would meet President Patil and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday and seek clemency for Rajoana. |
| "I will tell the president that the legal process is still on and request that the hanging be deferred. Law must be followed in the country," he said. | "I will tell the president that the legal process is still on and request that the hanging be deferred. Law must be followed in the country," he said. |
| Punjab's Advocate General Anupinder Singh Grewal said the government would appeal to a higher court to stop the execution. | Punjab's Advocate General Anupinder Singh Grewal said the government would appeal to a higher court to stop the execution. |
| Meanwhile, security has been tightened across the state with paramilitary troops carrying out marches across various town and cities to ensure peace. | Meanwhile, security has been tightened across the state with paramilitary troops carrying out marches across various town and cities to ensure peace. |
| Patiala Central Jail, where Rajoana is being held, has been turned into a fortress and all roads leading to the prison have been barricaded. | Patiala Central Jail, where Rajoana is being held, has been turned into a fortress and all roads leading to the prison have been barricaded. |
| On Tuesday, the superintendent of Patiala Central Jail Lakhwinder Singh Jakhar told the court that he was unable to carry out the sentence because a mercy petition for Rajoana and another man convicted in the case were before the president. | On Tuesday, the superintendent of Patiala Central Jail Lakhwinder Singh Jakhar told the court that he was unable to carry out the sentence because a mercy petition for Rajoana and another man convicted in the case were before the president. |
| A rights group has also appealed to the Supreme Court to stay the execution. | A rights group has also appealed to the Supreme Court to stay the execution. |
| The family of Beant Singh has also said it has forgiven Rajoana and would like his death penalty commuted to life in prison. | The family of Beant Singh has also said it has forgiven Rajoana and would like his death penalty commuted to life in prison. |
| Only the president or the Supreme Court can stop an execution. | Only the president or the Supreme Court can stop an execution. |
| Rajoana's impending execution has provoked protests outside India in the Sikh diaspora, with demonstrations planned in Birmingham for Wednesday and London on Thursday. | |
| Beant Singh was killed on 31 August along with 17 others by a suicide bomber identified as Dilawar Singh. Rajoana was convicted of acting as a back-up suicide bomber should Singh have failed. | Beant Singh was killed on 31 August along with 17 others by a suicide bomber identified as Dilawar Singh. Rajoana was convicted of acting as a back-up suicide bomber should Singh have failed. |
| Executions are rare in India where hundreds of convicts are awaiting the death penalty, including the killers of former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi. | Executions are rare in India where hundreds of convicts are awaiting the death penalty, including the killers of former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi. |
| Pakistani national Mohammad Ajmal Amir Qasab - the sole surviving gunman of the 2008 Mumbai attacks - is also on death row. The Supreme Court has stayed Qasab's execution while an appeal is considered. | Pakistani national Mohammad Ajmal Amir Qasab - the sole surviving gunman of the 2008 Mumbai attacks - is also on death row. The Supreme Court has stayed Qasab's execution while an appeal is considered. |