New Delhi,9/3: Convicted in the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, A. Yes. The Supreme Court has ordered Perarivalan to be released on bail. The court, in its judgment, said that Perarivalan has been in jail for nearly 30 years and his conduct during this period has been consistently satisfactory. Due to delays on the part of the government, he cannot be kept in jail forever. Here Perarivalan had told that the Tamil Nadu government’s order was not getting the approval of the Governor and the Center and his release could not be done.
Justice L. Nageswara Rao and Justice B. R. Gavai’s bench took note 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. Perarivalan told the Supreme Court that the Tamil Nadu government has already ordered the release, on which the approval of the governor and the central government is pending. Here, during the hearing, Additional Solicitor General KM Nataraja, appearing for the Central Government, strongly opposed Perarivalan’s release. He said that the death penalty for this murder was given in 1999. In 2014, the Supreme Court commuted this sentence to life imprisonment. The basis behind this was made that the President is taking a long time to decide on his mercy petition. It was emphasized that he had spent a lot of time in prison. The Additional Solicitor General said that the murder convict has got the concession on the basis of his stay in jail and he should not be given the benefit for the second time on the same ground. He said that the decision to waive Perarivalan’s sentence is legally the work of the Central Government, so the court should not order.