May commute sentence if Bhullar atones: Rajinder Kaur Bhattal

Leader of opposition in Punjab Assembly Rajinder Kaur Bhattal today said that the commuting of sentence to death row convict Devinder Pal Singh Bhullar could be considered if he "atones" for his crimes.

She said that top leaders of Congress had sacrificed their lives to restore normalcy in Punjab, after more than a decade-long bloodshed in which more than 32,000 people lost their lives.

Bhullar was sentenced to death by a trial court on August 25, 2001, for plotting terror attacks on Punjab SSP Sumedh Singh Saini in 1991 and current All India Anti-Terrorist Front chairman MS Bitta, the then Youth Congress chief, in 1993.

"Families of innocent people killed during the turmoil will feel hurt if the death sentence of Bhullar is commuted. The sentence can be commuted if he atones for his crimes," Bhattal said.