A Pakistani court Tuesday sought a larger bench to hear a petition to prove the innocence of freedom fighter Bhagat Singh in the murder case of a British police officer.

A Lahore High Court (LHC) two-member division bench, conducted the hearing of the petition, nearly 85 years after Singh’s execution by the colonial government.

The bench however, referred the case to the chief justice for constitution of a larger bench after petitioner argued that a three-member bench had awarded death sentence to Singh, and therefore, a larger bench should be formed to hear the plea.

The court accepted his plea to constitute a larger bench for hearing of the plea. Bhagat Singh was hanged by British rulers on March 23, 1931, after being tried under charges of hatching a conspiracy against the colonial government.