The Supreme Court has granted four more weeks to the Centre to respond to Balwant Singh Rajoana's petition seeking commutation of his death sentence. Rajoana, a member of the militant Sikh separatist group Babbar Khalsa, was convicted in the assassination case of Punjab CM Beant Singh in 1995. The delay in deciding his mercy petition, which has been pending before the President for 1 year and 4 months, was deemed "shocking" by his lawyer. The court has adjourned the matter, with the Centre seeking more time to verify the status of the plea.