Rajiv Gandhi Assassination Case: SC Invokes 'Extraordinary Power' Under Art 142 To Order Release Of All 6 Convicts

The Supreme Court today (Nov 11) directed the premature release of six convicts, including Nalini Sriharan and R P Ravichandran, serving life sentence in the assassination case of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.

Nalini, her husband Murugan alias Sriharan, Ravichandran, Jayakumar, Robert Pais, and Santhan were originally sentenced to death. Subsequently, their death penalty was commuted to life imprisonment.

A bench of Justices B R Gavai and B V Nagarathna said the judgement of the top court in the case of A G Perarivalan, one of the convicts in the case who was released in May, is equally applicable in their matter.

Invoking its extraordinary power under Article 142 of the Constitution, the top court had on May 18 ordered the release of Perarivalan, who had served over 30 years in jail.

Nalini and Ravichandran have approached the apex court seeking release from the prison-like fellow convict Perarivalan.

During an earlier hearing, Justices Gavai and Nagarathna had pointed out that the convicts had spent over 30 years in prison and had spent the time in studies, earning degrees.

Gandhi was assassinated on the night of May 21, 1991 at Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu by a woman suicide bomber, identified as Dhanu, at a poll rally.

Tamil Nadu Government Recommendation

In October this year, the Tamil Nadu government recommended to the Supreme Court the pre-mature release of Nalini Sriharan and RP Ravichandran, convicts who are serving life imprisonment in connection with the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.

Tamil Nadu government in its affidavit said that its 2018 aid and advice for the remission of their life sentence is binding upon the Governor.

It said, "The said recommendation in respect of seven life convict petitioners was sent to the then governor of Tamil Nadu individually for approval on September 11 and the same was pending with his office since then." The law relating to the power of the Governor under Article 161 of the Constitution and the power of the state government in dealing with the offences (302 of IPC) falls within the exclusive domain of the state government and is also well settled, said Tamil Nadu.

The state government said that it is the competent authority to take a decision on the petition filed by Nalini and Ravichandran under Article 161 of the Constitution and "the decision of the state cabinet dated September 9, 2018, thereon is final and it can be exercised by Governor of Tamil Nadu as per the aid and advice of the cabinet". The recommendation of the state government remitting the life sentence of the petitioner was sent to the Governor of Tamil Nadu for approval on September 11, 2018, and the same was kept pending with his office for more than two and half years and the recommendation was finally forwarded by the Governor to the President on January 27, 2021, and it still remains undecided for the past one year and nine months, it said.

Nalini and Ravichandran had approached the Supreme Court citing the judgment of the top court in the case of co-convict AG Perarivalan where he was released. Earlier, both had knocked the Madras High Court seeking the same relief, however, the High Court had refused to entertain the petition.

The Madras High Court while turning down the petition had stated that it did not have special powers that the Supreme Court has under Article 142 of the Constitution. Hence, it cannot order their release, as the Supreme Court did for Perarivalan in May 2022. The High Court had said they could approach the Supreme Court if their plea were based on Perarivalan's release.

Ravichandran, who has been in jail for 30 years now, sought interim bail until his case for formal release reached a conclusion. On May 18, the Supreme Court evoked its extraordinary powers under Article 142 of the Constitution to release AG Perarivalan, who was one of the seven convicts in the assassination case.

Following Perarivalan's release, Ravichandran sent a letter to Chief Minister MK Stalin seeking the release of the remaining six convicts, including him and mentioned that the Governor has kept the files of release without consideration for over three years which he condemns as an anti-constitutional approach. Deciding Perarivalan's plea for premature release from jail based on the recommendation made by the Tamil Nadu government in September 2018, the apex court ordered his release, while the six other convicts remain in jail.

Congress Reacts

Congress called the Supreme Court's decision to release convicts in Rajiv Gandhi assassination case as 'most unfortunate'. It accused the court of not acting in consonance with spirit of India.

(With inputs from PTI)