Release of Rajiv murder convicts; Centre turns down TN’s proposal

The Centre has rejected the proposal of the Tamil Nadu government to release seven convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case on the basis that the matter is sub judice in the Suprme Court. Reports say that it is the second time in two years that the State had written to the Centre seeking its views on its decision to remit their sentence. The first letter was sent during the UPA government’s tenure in February 2014.

The seven convicts are V. Sriharan alias Murugan, A.G. Perarivalan, T. Suthendraraja alias Santhan, Jayakumar, Robert Payas, Ravichandran and Nalini.

In its response the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has told the State that “since the matter is sub judice in Supreme Court, it has no authority to release the prisoners.”