Balwant Singh Rajoana, on death row following conviction in the assassination case of former Punjab CM Beant Singh, has written to the Akal Takht urging it to direct the SGPC to withdraw the mercy plea filed on his behalf with the Centre.In his letter to the temporal seat, Rajoana urged that the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) be directed to withdraw the plea “within 10 days”.Rajoana, who is currently lodged in a Patiala jail, wrote to the Takht on March 27.“I have been in jail for over 30 years now and awaiting a clear order on my punishment, despite the Supreme Court directing the Centre to decide my fate,” he wrote.“Therefore, my request is to withdraw the mercy plea within 10 days as the Centre is not bothered, and even the SGPC has failed to meet the concerned,” he added.Rajoana’s letter comes at a time when several Panthic bodies are seeking the release of the Bandi Singhs — the Sikh political prisoners languishing in jails after having served their terms.In 2023, Rajoana had written to the Akal Takht Jathedar and appealed to him to intervene and withdraw his mercy petition, filed by the SGPC almost 12 years ago.In May 2023, the Supreme Court had refused to commute the death sentence of Rajoana to life imprisonment and asked the Centre to take a further decision on his mercy plea. In September last year, the SC had wondered why he had not been hanged till now. “Who is to be blamed for that? At least, we would not have stayed his execution,” it said.