THE IDENTITY of the nephew of one of former prime minister Indira Gandhi’s assassins has been revealed after he dropped a legal bid in New Zealand to keep his name secret, a local media report said.
Baltej Singh, who is serving a 22-year prison sentence for importing over 700 kg of methamphetamine, had been seeking permanent name suppression, according to New Zealand’s Stuff web portal.
Singh is the nephew of Satwant Singh, one of the bodyguards who assassinated Indira Gandhi in 1984.
Earlier, the High Court had granted Singh permanent name suppression after he argued that revealing his identity would cause extreme hardship to him and his family.
New Zealand authorities appealed the ruling. In November, the Court of Appeal ruled that Singh could be named.
Singh then sought leave to take the case to the Supreme Court but later abandoned the appeal, allowing media organisations to publish his identity, the report said.
Stuff had also opposed the attempt to suppress Singh’s identity.
The prosecution had told the court that Indian media had already disclosed Singh’s identity.
In an affidavit, Singh’s father said the family had “become notorious” among Sikhs and Hindus worldwide and faced violence, threats and intimidation, according to the report.
Delhi saw violence and killings targeting members of the Sikh community after Indira Gandhi was assassinated by her bodyguards in 1984.
(With inputs from agencies)
