The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the Delhi Government to get inputs from the Intelligence Bureau on Beant Singh murder case convict Jagtar Singh Hawara’s petition seeking his transfer from Tihar jail in the national capital to a prison in Punjab.Hawara — a Babbar Khalsa terrorist — is serving a life term in the case related to the killing of the former Punjab Chief Minister in 1995. He escaped from high security Burail jail on January 22, 2004 and was re-arrested after a year and put back in jail.Terming it a “sensitive matter”, a Bench of Justice MM Jattvibedresh and Justice PB Varale said it was not in a position to go against the advice of the state government.On behalf of the Delhi Government, Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati said Hawara was involved in a jailbreak and his death penalty was converted to life imprisonment in the murder case.Contending that transfer may increase chances of his escape, Bhati referred to an advisory issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs on transfer of high risk prisoners.Referring to an affidavit filed by the Punjab Government, the ASG said the law and order situation in the border state will be affected if Hawara was transferred. He has been convicted in the jail-break case, she added.Senior advocate Colin Gonsalves, representing Hawara, submitted that Beant Singh was assassinated 31 years ago when the convict was just 21-year-old. “My mother is very old, 82 years old and in a serious condition. He is seeking transfer to a Punjab high security prison and not going to be released,” Gonsalves said.“When you have an ideology… we don’t know how it will emanate…Every sinner has a future… See, people say if you kill one person you are a murderer and if you kill 1,000 persons you are a conqueror. So that’s the difference. He may mellow down and be a changed person but what may trigger him after that we can’t say,” the Bench said, posting the matter for hearing after four weeks.The Delhi Government had on September 21 opposed Hawara’s petition seeking his transfer from Tihar jail in the national capital to a prison in Punjab, citing security concerns.“This is a matter where the person convicted of killing the former Chief Minister of Punjab wants to go back to Punjab jail,” Solicitor General Tushar Mehta had said.Pointing out that he had previously escaped from a prison in Punjab, Mehta had said the NCT was opposed to the convict being sent back to the state again. The NCT Government would prefer Hawara to continue being lodged in Tihar Jail, he had told the Bench.Hawara has sought his transfer to a Punjab jail on grounds that he demonstrated good conduct in jail, the crime was committed at a time of social unrest and his daughter lived in Punjab.He has contended that all co-accused involved in the jail break were in Punjab jails and the Director General (Prisons) recommended his transfer to a jail in Punjab almost eight years ago on October 7, 2016.He also claimed that there was not a single case pending against him in Delhi and that he was unable to attend proceedings in a case pending in Punjab.Former Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh and 16 others were killed on August 31, 1995 in an explosion outside the Civil Secretariat in Chandigarh on August 31, 1995. Hawara was arrested on September 21, 1995.A special CBI court had awarded the death sentence to Balwant Singh Rajoana and Jagtar Singh Hawara in 2007 while co-accused Lakhwinder Singh, Gurmeet Singh and Shamsher Singh were sentenced to life imprisonment for hatching a conspiracy to assassinate the former Chief Minister.However, the Punjab and Haryana High Court in October 2010 modified Hawara’s sentence to life imprisonment for the rest of his life and the prosecution’s appeal against the high court’s order was pending in the Supreme Court.Rajoana’s mercy petition has been hanging fire for more than 12 years.The top court had on September 27, 2024 issued notice to the Centre and governments of Delhi and Punjab on his petition seeking his transfer from Tihar Jail in Delhi to a jail in Punjab.“Petitioner (Hawara) had 36 false cases foisted on him after the murder of the Chief Minister Beant Singh. He has been acquitted in all, except one case. He is unable to attend the court proceedings on account of his incarceration in Delhi. He is not being produced in court and the proceedings are going on without him … which is prejudicial to the Petitioner…,” the petitioner submitted.