Indicating its reservations, the Government on Thursday said it would abide by latest Supreme Court judgment on Tamil Nadu’s move to seek the Centre’s opinion on remitting the sentence of Rajiv Gandhi’s assassins.
“We have received a letter from the Tamil Nadu Government on Wednesday and we are examining it. But I want to state about the accused that Supreme Court has given a verdict and to abide by its order is our Constitutional responsibility, not only constitutional but also moral responsibility,” Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said in lok Sabha during Zero Hour.
Singh’s statement came a day after Tamil Nadu Government said it has decided to remit the sentence of life imprisonment of all the seven convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case and release them and sought the Centre’s views on the move. In a letter to Union Home Secretary Rajiv Mehrishi on Thursday, Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary K Gnanadesikan said the State Government has received petitions from the seven convicts requesting it to release them as they had spent more than 20 years in prison.
leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad told reporters that Congress would oppose the State Government’s decision.”We don’t agree with the Tamil Nadu Government. The Supreme Court has already rejected this plea of several organisations and there is no question of supporting such a move.
“As a party, we will definitely oppose this move of the Tamil Nadu Government,” he said. Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi said it was for the Centre to decide on the issue.
Congress and AIADMK members entered into arguments in the lok Sabha over Tamil Nadu Government’s decision. As soon as the House met for the day, Congress members said it was an important issue relating to the assassination of a former Prime Minister and such a move should not be allowed.
AIADMK members started protesting against the Congress members’ demands and later rushed to the Well for a brief while. Speaker Sumitra Mahajan allowed Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge to speak on the issue briefly during the Question Hour. Kharge protested against the Tamil Nadu Government’s decision, terming it as “very unfortunate”.