印度最高法院拒绝死囚的请求

 　　NEW DELHI, April 13 (Xinhua) -- In a landmark¹ ruling, India's Supreme² Court has rejected a plea by a death row prisoner to commute³ his sentence to life in jail.

　　Devinder Pal⁴ Singh Bhullar -- on death row since 2001 for triggering a bomb blast in September 1993, in which nine people were killed -- had approached the apex⁵ court citing "an inordinate⁶ delay" in deciding his mercy plea by Indian President.

　　In fact, then Indian President Pratibha Patil took eight years to reject his clemency⁷ petition in 2011.

　　Dismissing the 48-year-old convict's petition Friday, a two- judge bench said: "The petitioner⁸ has not been able to make out a case for commuting⁹ his sentence."

　　Bhullar was a member of Khalistan Liberation Force, a militant¹⁰ group fighting to create a Sikh homeland called Khalistan in the northern state of Punjab.

　　The ruling by the Supreme Court will pave the way for the hanging of 17 other prisoners currently on death row in India, and whose mercy petitions have been rejected by the President, including three assassins of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.

　　India rarely executed prisoners till last year.

　　But, in the last six months, two prisoners were hanged. While Mohammed Ajmal Amir Qasab, the only terrorist caught alive in the 2008 Mumbai attacks, was executed in November, Afzal Guru, a native of Kashmir, was hanged this February for masterminding the 2001 attack on Indian Parliament.

1 landmark   

n.陆标，划时代的事，地界标

参考例句：

• The Russian Revolution represents a landmark in world history.俄国革命是世界历史上的一个里程碑。
• The tower was once a landmark for ships.这座塔曾是船只的陆标。

2 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

3 commute   

vi.乘车上下班；vt.减(刑)；折合；n.上下班交通

参考例句：

• I spend much less time on my commute to work now.我现在工作的往返时间要节省好多。
• Most office workers commute from the suburbs.很多公司的职员都是从郊外来上班的。

4 pal   

n.朋友，伙伴，同志；vi.结为友

参考例句：

• He is a pal of mine.他是我的一个朋友。
• Listen,pal,I don't want you talking to my sister any more.听着，小子，我不让你再和我妹妹说话了。

5 apex   

n.顶点，最高点

参考例句：

• He reached the apex of power in the early 1930s.他在三十年代初达到了权力的顶峰。
• His election to the presidency was the apex of his career.当选总统是他一生事业的顶峰。

6 inordinate   

adj.无节制的；过度的

参考例句：

• The idea of this gave me inordinate pleasure.我想到这一点感到非常高兴。
• James hints that his heroine's demands on life are inordinate.詹姆斯暗示他的女主人公对于人生过于苛求。

7 clemency   

n.温和，仁慈，宽厚

参考例句：

• The question of clemency would rest with the King.宽大处理问题，将由国王决定。
• They addressed to the governor a plea for clemency.他们向州长提交了宽刑的申辨书。

8 petitioner   

n.请愿人

参考例句：

• The judge awarded the costs of the case to the petitioners.法官判定由这起案件的上诉人支付诉讼费用。
• The petitioner ask for a variation in her maintenance order.上诉人要求对她生活费的命令的条件进行变更。

9 commuting   

交换（的）

参考例句：

• I used the commuting time to read and answer my mail. 我利用上下班在汽车中的时间来阅读和答复给我的函电。
• Noncommuting objects are as real to the mathematicians as commuting objects. 对于数学家来说，不可交换的对象与可交换的对象是一样真实的。

10 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。