The Supreme Court on Friday ordered the pre-mature release of six accused, including Nalini Sriharan and RP Ravichandra, who are serving life imprisonment, in connection with the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, reported Live Law.
“The appellants are directed to be set at liberty if not required in any other matter,” the apex court bench comprising Justices BR Gavai and BV Nagarathna ordered.
The bench passed the order following the direction that was passed on May 17, which had granted relief to another convict in the case, Perarivalan, noting that the earlier order applied to present applicants as well.
Further, the Supreme Court noted that convicts – Nalini Sriharan, Robert Pais, Ravichandran, Raja, Sriharan and Jaikumar – have spent over three decades in prison and that their conduct in the prison was satisfactory.
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Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated on the night of May 21, 1991, at Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu by a woman suicide bomber, identified as Dhanu, during an election rally.
Senior advocates Sanjay Hedge and Gopal Shankaranarayanan appeared for the appellants, and senior advocate Rakesh Dwiedi appeared for the state government.
Regarding Nalini Sriharan, the top court observed, “she is a woman and has been incarcerated for a period of more than three decades and her conduct also is found satisfactory. She has also undertaken various studies,” as quoted by Live Law.