The Supreme Court has granted bail to AG Perarivalan, who is serving a life sentence in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case. The court, in its judgment, said that Perarivalan has been in jail for 32 years anyway. He has already served his share. He was released on parole twice. But he did not do any such work which comes under suspicion.
However, on behalf of the Center, the Attorney General told the court that the guilty of heinous crime should not get bail. Perarivalan is alleged to have bought an 8-volt battery for the belt bomb blast used in the murder case.
A bench of Justices L Nageswara Rao and BR Gavai took cognizance of the submissions that the convict Perarivalan has been in jail for 30 years and his behavior has been satisfactory, whether in jail or during the period of parole. . The court was hearing 47-year-old Perarivalan’s plea seeking suspension of his life sentence till the MDMA probe is completed.
Perarivalan had submitted to the court that his mercy petition was pending with the Governor for a long time. But the Center opposed this saying that the President has the right to decide on his appeal. His death sentence has already been postponed. Now making delay a weapon, he cannot take any more relief.
However, on the petition filed by Perarivalan regarding the pardon, the Supreme Court had said in 2018 that the governor has the right to take this decision. Within three days, the then AIADMK government of Tamil Nadu had recommended the release of seven convicts, including Perarivalan. The government sent this recommendation to the governor.
Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated on May 21, 1991 by a woman suicide bomber during an election rally in Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu. The suicide woman was identified as Dhanu. The assassination of Rajiv Gandhi was the first such incident in the country in which a suicide bomb was used to kill a top leader. Perarivalan is one of the four convicts serving a sentence in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case. Besides Perarivalan, Santhan, Murugan and Nalini are the culprits in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case. Murugan is the husband of Nalini.
The Supreme Court had in 1999 upheld the death sentence awarded to the four convicts Perarivalan, Murugan, Santham and Nalini. But in 2014, the Supreme Court commuted Perarivalan’s death sentence to life imprisonment. Along with him, two other prisoners Santham and Murugan also got similar relief.