Chandigarh: Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann has written to Governor Gulab Chand Kataria recommending a 10-day parole for Jagtar Singh Hawara, a life convict in the 1995 assassination of former Chief Minister Beant Singh. In the letter, Mann cited humanitarian grounds, stating that Hawara’s elderly mother is suffering from age-related health issues that have led to a deterioration in her condition. “It is imperative because of the deteriorating health condition of his mother,” the Chief Minister said, urging the Governor to consider granting the short-term parole at the earliest so Hawara can meet her. Hawara is currently lodged in Delhi’s Mandoli Central Jail.
Mann noted that Hawara has filed a criminal writ petition (CRWP No. 3868/2026) before the Punjab and Haryana High Court seeking directions for parole, and that the court has directed that the application be considered. Jagtar Singh Hawara, associated with the banned Babbar Khalsa International, was convicted for his role in the August 31, 1995, car bomb attack outside the Punjab and Haryana Civil Secretariat in Chandigarh that killed Beant Singh and 16 others. He is serving a life sentence. In 2015, while incarcerated, hardliner Sikh groups appointed him as Jathedar of Akal Takht, a position that remains disputed and is not recognised by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC). The parole request comes amid ongoing legal proceedings.
In July 2026, the Punjab and Haryana High Court directed a time-bound process for deciding Hawara’s earlier parole plea (originally seeking four weeks to attend to his mother), involving the Mandoli Jail Superintendent and the Chandigarh Administration.Support for the move has come from within the ruling Aam Aadmi Party. AAP MP Malvinder Singh Kang said he wholeheartedly backed the Chief Minister’s appeal, describing it as a matter of compassion and the mother-son bond rather than politics.The final decision on the parole rests with the competent authorities, including the Governor and prison officials