External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Wednesday confirmed that the hanging of Indian national Sarabjit Singh has been deferred by a month. The minister stated that the Indian High Commission in Islamabad was informed by Pakistan Foreign Office that President Pervez Musharraf has stayed the execution of Sarabjit Singh till April 30. He assured the Lok Sabha that efforts were ongoing to secure his freedom. India on its part has released a Pakistani national Jamal Qureshi from its jail.
He called the Centre’s efforts in this direction as “partial success” and assured all that saving his life was among the agenda of the government.
Meanwhile a reporter working for Pakistan’s Dawn newspaper told Zee News that the Pakistan government had not made any official declaration of the same yet. She however said that reliable sources from Pakistan’s Foreign Office have told Dawn that the hanging will now be on April 30. But confirmation from the top brass of the government was still awaited.
Pakistan`s caretaker Human Rights Minister Ansar Burney told the media that there was a provision in the Constitution under Article 45 that empowered the President to commute the death sentence to life imprisonment.
The news of the postponed brought instant smiles on the faces of the family members of Sarabjit. His sister Dalbir Kaur thanked the media, members of the government and the opposition for raising the issue at the highest levels with the Pak government. She also expressed her gratitude to millions of countrymen for their constant support.
Sarabjit was sentenced to death over a decade ago for his alleged involvement in four bomb blasts in Lahore and Multan that killed 14 people.
His mercy petition was rejected by Musharraf on March 3. But Indian national Kashmir Singh who was arrested on spying charges was recently pardoned and freed after spending 35 years on death row in Pakistani jails.
India on its part has reportedly released Pakistani national Jamal Qureshi from its jail. Jamal Qureshi has been in spending time in UP jails on charges of peddling a fake note for the past 2 years.