NEW DELHI: The murder trial of former Punjab chief minister Beant Singh finally came to an end yesterday after a special sessions court in Chandigarh awarded a life imprisonment sentence along with a fine of Rs. 35,000 to 43 years old Jagtar Singh Tara in connection with the assassination.
Advocate Simranjit Singh defense counsel of Bhai Jagtar Singh Tara while interacting with the media present outside the Burail Jail complex said that “after pronouncement of the sentence Bhai Jagtar Singh Tara is in high spirits (chardikala) and is fully satisfied with the sentencing”.
In January this year, Tara submitted a six-page confessional statement in the court and had also he also given a detailed explanation for the assassination where he recorded his statements under Section 313 of the CrPC during the proceedings held at the Burail jail. They dug a 110-feet long tunnel from their barracks in January 2004 to make good their escape.
He was later arrested from Thailand in 2015.
The lawyer said his client would not challenge the order in the higher court. Sixteen others also lost their lives in the incident. SGPC chief secretary Roop Singh said, “Tara, along with his aides, did not assassinate the CM due to any personal grudge or enmity”.
Terming Tara as the hero of Sikh struggle, Dal Khalsa president Harpal Singh Cheema said,
“Such sentences won’t deter Sikh activists from fighting for their cause”.
“Jagtar Singh Tara murdered Beant Singh out of emotions and not due to land or property dispute. Murdering someone is bad but he has been given punishment after 22 yrs. It’s painful for family as well as Sikh community,” Roop Singh, Chief Secretary, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) told ANI after the verdict was pronounced on the same.