The Supreme Court has ordered the release of one of the convicts, namely Perarivalan in former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination, after 31 years.
On March 9, the top court granted bail to Perarivalan while taking note of his long incarceration of over 30 years and no history of complaints when out on parole.
He was in jail for 31 years and was released on the plea of the Tamil Nadu government.
| Install Our App | DOWNLOAD |
| Join Telegram Channel | JOIN NOW |
| Join Facebook Group | JOIN NOW |
| Subscribe YouTube Channel | SUBSCRIBE |
| Follow On Twitter | FOLLOW |
| Follow On Instagram | FOLLOW |
The verdict could pave the way for the release of other six convicts in the case, including Nalini Sriharan and her husband Murugan, a Sri Lankan national.
The Supreme Court had earlier said that the Tamil Nadu governor was bound by the decision of the state cabinet on the release of Perarivalan, and disapproved of his action, sending the mercy plea to the President saying it cannot shut eyes to something against the Constitution.
The top court had refused to agree with the Centre’s suggestion that the court should wait till the President decides on the issue.
It had told the Centre that the governor was bound by the aid and advice given by the Tamil Nadu Council of Ministers under Article 161 of the Constitution while directing the Centre to submit its response.
State cabinet had taken its decision based on relevant considerations. In exercise of Article 142, it is appropriate to release the convict,” judges led by Justice L Nageswara Rao said, invoking special powers of the Supreme Court.
Speaking shortly after the verdict, Perarivalan said, “Truth and justice were on our side. This wouldn’t have happened without the support and love of the people.I firmly believe there is no need for capital punishment.”
Welcoming the judgement, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin said it could find a place in the “Justice-law-political-administrative history.”
Perarivalan
Nineteen at the time of the assassination, Perarivalan was accused of buying the two 9-volt batteries for Sivarasan, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) man who masterminded the assassination. The batteries were used in the bomb to assassinate Rajiv Gandhi in 1991.
Perarivalan was sentenced to death by an anti-terrorism court in 1998. The next year, the Supreme Court upheld the sentence but commuted it to life imprisonment in 2014. In March this year, the top court had granted him bail.
Shortly after, Perarivalan had appealed seeking an early release from jail.
The Centre had opposed Perarivalan’s plea, saying Tamil Nadu Governor had referred the matter to President Ram Nath Kovind, who is yet to take a call on it.
In the hearing last week, the Centre drew flak from the court over its argument that in cases of grant of mercy, only the President would have exclusive powers.
The court said this would mean the mercies granted by Governors all these years would be unconstitutional.
Rajiv Gandhi Assassination.
Former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated on May 21, 1991 at Tamil Nadu’s Sriperumbudur by a woman suicide bomber, identified as Dhanu, at an election rally.
Seven people were convicted in the case. Though all were sentenced to death, in 2014, the Supreme Court commuted them to life terms, citing inordinate delay by the President in deciding on their mercy pleas.
The jail term of one of them, Nalini Sriharan, was commuted to life in 2000 following intervention by Rajiv Gandhi’s widow Sonia Gandhi, as the woman had given birth to a child while in jail.
Though the Tamil Nadu cabinet under J Jayalalithaa and Edappadi K Palanisami had recommended the release of the convicts in 2016 and 2018, successive Governors did not abide by it. After much delay, they forwarded it to the President, who only acts on the counsel of the Union cabinet.
Perarivalan and others moved courts as they were denied remission like other convicts even after they served beyond 16 years. They’ve now spent three decades in jail.
Perarivalan, who was in solitary confinement for many years, has a very good conduct record in jail. He had earned several academic qualifications during the long incarceration. He had also authored a book.
While Perarivalan claimed all along that he wasn’t aware of the purpose he was asked to get the batteries, years later, a retired CBI officer, Mr Thiagarajan, had apologised claiming he had altered the Perarivalan’s confessional statement.