President Pervez Musharraf has delayed by 30 days the execution of an Indian prisoner who was condemned to death on charges of terrorism, a jail official said on Wednesday. The move came a day after Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said his government was making all possible efforts to seek a reprieve from Islamabad for convict Sarabjit Singh.
Singh, whose family says he is the victim of mistaken identity, was to be hanged on April 1 after being convicted of involvement in 1990 blasts that killed four people in the Pakistani city of Lahore.
"The president of Pakistan has been pleased to stay the execution of condemned prisoner Manjeet Singh alias Sarabjit Singh for a period of 30 days up to April 30, 2008," Bashir Khan, deputy superintendent of Lahore's Kot Lakhpat jail, told AFP, reading out a presidential order.
In New Delhi, MPs cutting across party lines cheered Musharraf's decision by thumping their desks in parliament as the Indian government said it would not give up efforts to save Sarabjit from the gallows.
"The (Indian) government has just received a communication from the Indian embassy in Islamabad regarding this decision," Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee said amid loud cheers in parliament's lower house. "The government of India is continuing its efforts to save the life of Sarabjit Singh and we have achieved partial success and we will continue to carry on our efforts," Mukherjee told the house.