Indian Supreme Court stops execution of Sikh terrorist

India's Supreme Court Friday stopped the execution of a Sikh terrorist on death row, and sought a medical report on his mental health. Devinder Pal Singh Bhullar was sentenced to death by an Indian court in 2001 for his role in the 1993 car bombing in the national capital, in which at least nine people were killed. The apex court's decision came in the wake of a plea by Bhullar 's family recently to commute his death sentence to life in prison, citing he has not been mentally well. The Supreme Court's decision came just 10 days after it commuted the death sentences of 15 prisoners to life in jail on grounds of "an inordinate delay" in deciding their clemency petitions. It had also ruled that mental illness and solitary confinement could also be reasons for commutation of death sentences. In April last year, the Supreme Court had refused to commute Bhullar's death sentence to life in prison on the grounds of mental illness and a delay by the Indian president on a plea by his family. He has been on death row since August 2001 and his mercy plea in 2002 was rejected by then Indian President Pratibha Patil in 2011. But, the apex court's recent order encouraged his family to appeal again and this time the terrorist's execution was stayed by the court for the time being. Some 400 convicts are on death row currently. India rarely executes prisoners, except two hangings in the last two years -- one of Mohammed Ajmal Qasab, the sole surviving terrorist convicted for his role in the 2008 Mumbai attacks, and another of a Kashmiri fruit seller Afzal Guru for his role in the 2001 Indian Parliament attack.