Digital Desk: On Friday, the Supreme Court ruled
that all six of the defendants in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case who were
sentenced to life in jail should be released.
Nalini, PR Ravichandran, Robert Pias, Suthendraraja,
Jaykumar, and Sriharan were all released as a result of the ruling.
The
decision was made by the bench of justices BR Gavai and BV Nagarathna while
taking into account the circumstances surrounding the release of A G
Perarivalan, another defendant in the case, in May of this year using the
court's exceptional power under Article 142 of the Constitution.
The
highest court observed that the remaining offenders met the requirements set
forth for Perarivalan.
The
court's panel noted that the Tamil Nadu cabinet had recommended their release
on September 9, 2018, and that the governor, before whom the convicts had filed
remission requests, would be bound by that recommendation.
The bench also highlighted that the inmates had served more than
three decades in prison and that their behaviour there was satisfactory, noting
that they had all been judged to have excellent behaviour and that they had all
earned different degrees while they were inside.
On the evening of May 21, 1991, a female suicide bomber at a
political rally in Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu, killed Rajiv Gandhi, the former
prime minister of India.
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