Chennai, Nov. 29 (ANI): Tamil Nadu Government today brought to the notice of the Madras High Court the 30th August resolution of the state assembly, urging President Pratibha Devisingh Patil to reconsider the mercy petitions of the three accused facing death sentence for their alleged role in the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.
State Home Secretary Rameshram Misra in his counter affidavit said his earlier affidavit was 'misread' by a section of the media and he had sought the permission of the court to file the additional affidavit to 'dispel the doubts'.
"In deference to sentiments of the people of Tamil Nadu and views of political parties over the issue, the Tamil Nadu assembly strongly urges the President to reconsider the mercy petitions of Santhan, Sriharan alias Murugan and Perarivalan and commute their death sentences to life imprisonment," Misra said, while quoting the resolution.
The Madras High Court had earlier on October 28 adjourned to November 29 the hearing on the bail petitions filed by Rajiv Gandhi's assassins.
Rajiv Gandhi was killed by a suicide bomber at an election rally in Sriperumbedur on May 21, 1991. Fourteen other people also lost their lives in that blast.
In 1999, the three convicts - Santhan, Murugan and Perarivalan - were sentenced to death by the Supreme Court for being part of the group that conspired to kill Gandhi.
They were scheduled to be hanged on September 9. But the Madras High Court suspended their execution by eight weeks. Their mercy petitions, filed 11 years ago asking for their sentence to be commuted to life in prison, have been rejected by President Pratibha Patil.
After Nalini, married to Murugan, gave birth to a baby girl in jail, her death sentence was commuted to life at the request of Congress President Sonia Gandhi. (ANI)
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