Court verdict, impact
The Congress party is in distress over the Supreme Court judgment freeing the Rajiv Gandhi assassination convict A.G. Perarivalan. At the same time, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam in Tamil Nadu is in a mood for celebration. The beneficiaries of the judgment are the DMK’s ideological friends. When there are political undertones to the case, only the court should take the decisions rather than political parties making recommendations to the Governor. Second, when the convict’s innocence is not certain, as observed in the Editorial (May 19), empowering State cabinets to recommend the release of prisoners does not augur well for the country’s legal system.
P. Mangalachandran,
West Ponniam, Kannur, Kerala
The top court has done what it has done. While I do not know the extent of Perarivalan’s involvement in the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, there is no doubt that he is one of the very small group of people who, by their action of assassinating the leader, have definitely changed the course of the history and politics of India.
Would this thought have occurred to Perarivalan, while posing before cameras now, about how much his role has affected India?
M.S. Sundaresan,
Mumbai
Prolonged incarceration, satisfactory conduct, chronic ailments, educational qualifications, etc., are not at all convincing in securing the release of a convict linked to a crime as heinous as the assassination of the former Prime Minister. Also, what is clear is that the Indian judiciary should look inwards and ponder over the extreme delay in the disposal of cases; the case backlog across India is mind-boggling.
N.S.R. Murthy,
Secunderabad
Perarivalan is now a free man and the long years that have lapsed from his life and the rights he could not have had can never be compensated. Undoubtedly, the case exposes the complexity and sluggishness of our political and judicial systems, which often fail to do justice to the ordinary citizen. One hopes that the verdict will open the eyes of the very people who should be upholding the rights of citizens.
Bijumon P.N.,
Mattuthavalom, Upputhara, Kerala
