From last 11 years, the clemency plea of Rajiv Gandhi killers had been delaying or in waiting of decision made by the President.
Now, the Supreme Court decided to transfer itself the petitions filed by three killers, Santhan, Murugan and Perarivalan – against their death penalty from the Madras high court.
A bench of Justice G.S. Singhvi delivered order to adjudicate Supreme Court for directing the clemency plea filled by them against their death, with the Madras High Court on lawyer K.L. Venkat’s plea seeking transfer of their pleas outside Tamil Nadu, and listed the case for hearing on July 10.
A free and fair hearing of the proceedings cannot be held in the Madras High Court owing to the “surcharged, hostile and vitiated” atmosphere prevailing there.
Therefore, the apex court ordered favoring the death row convicts and shifted the case to Supreme Court through a ruling pronounced Tuesday.
The three convicts are facing death sentence in the former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi assassination case. In 1991 Rajiv was assassinated at an election rally at Sriperumbudur, near Chennai and the trial court in 1999 declared a death sentence against Rajiv’s killers who were found in guilty.
11 years ago, in 2000, they had filled their mercy petitions before the President seeking relaxation in their death sentences and change to life imprisonment, but after a long waiting period, they had faced a rejection by the President Pratibha Patil in earlier 2011.
Then they had approached to the Madras high court challenging President’s rejection with so much delayed period. On August 30, 2011, the high Court had stayed their hanging on their mercy plea in the death row and had issued notices to the Centre and the Tamil Nadu government.
