Twenty six years after former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination, the Supreme Court on Wednesday decided to take a fresh look at the conviction of one of the convicts, AG Perarivalan, who has sought recall of the apex court judgment of 1998 holding him guilty in the case.
The Bench of Justices Ranjan Gogoi and R Banumathi issued notice to the CBI and the Centre and posted the matter for hearing next week on the plea made by the convict that the larger conspiracy with regard to the make and design of the bomb is yet to be established.
Perarivalan, alias Arivu, was accused of supplying two batteries that went into the making of the bomb. He claimed he was not aware that the batteries would be used for making the bomb. Just a day ago, the SC had directed the Centre to decide within three months the plea of the Tamil Nadu Government to release all seven convicted for plotting the former PM’s assassination.
On Wednesday, when Perarivalan’s case came up for hearing, the Bench wanted to know from his lawyer Gopal Shankaranaraynan on whether he wished to await the Centre’s decision or proceed with his application to recall his conviction. Taking the latter option, Shankaranaraynan informed the Bench that with the larger conspiracy probe into the bomb heading nowhere, it was fair on his part to seek recall of his conviction as the court was misled on his role in the entire conspiracy.
The larger conspiracy theory emerged following the findings of the Justice MC Jain Commission of Enquiry. Based on this report, Perarivalan had filed an appeal in the Supreme Court seeking response from CBI on the current status of probe. CBI counsel informed the Bench that the Sri lankan administration was not extending cooperation due to which the probe has delayed.
In his application, Perarivalan sought recall of the Supreme Court judgment of May 11, 1998 confirming death penalty on him and three others. Their sentence was later commuted to life by the apex court considering the delay in deciding upon their mercy petitions.
After Perarivalan approached the court last year seeking status of the probe into the larger conspiracy, former CBI officer V Thiagarajan, the first DIG of the Multi-Disciplinary Monitoring Agency probing the Rajiv Gandhi assassination, filed an affidavit on October 26, 2017.
It stated, “The above said accused Perarivalan’s statement that he was totally in the dark as to the purpose for which the batteries were purchased was not recorded by me, because it would be an exculpatory statement and hence the whole purpose of recording the confessional statement would be lost.” Keeping in view the ex-CBI officers’ affidavit, Perarivalan asked the SC to annul his conviction in the case.