After the recent faux pas over a presidential pardon for a death row convict who died five years ago, the Union home ministry will seek “life certificates” of prisoners languishing in jails on death row whose mercy petitions are pending with the President. The MHA will ask state home departments to certify that each such convict is alive before the President takes a final view.
Eleven mercy petitions of death row convicts are now pending with the President. In May and June, President Pratibha Patil, who leaves office later this month, cleared six mercy petitions, converting all death sentences to life imprisonm-ent. She has, however, left the decision on Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru to her successor.
Last month President commuted Bandu Baburao Tidke’s death sentence to life imprisonment, only to realise later that he had died in 2007.