The Supreme Court on March 9, 2022, granted bail to A G Perarivalan who has been serving a life sentence in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, taking note of his long incarceration of over 30 years and no history of complaint when out on parole.
Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated on the night of May 21, 1991 at Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu by a woman suicide bomber, identified as Dhanu, at an election rally. Fourteen others, including Dhanu herself, were also killed.
In its May 1999 order, the Supreme Court upheld the death sentence of four convicts -- Perarivalan, Murugan, Santham and Nalini.
In April 2000, the Tamil Nadu governor commuted Nalini's death sentence on the basis of the state government's recommendation and an appeal made by Rajiv Gandhi's widow Sonia Gandhi.
On February 18, 2014, the Supreme Court commuted Perarivalan's death sentence to life imprisonment, along with that of Santham and Murugan, on the grounds of an 11-year delay in deciding their mercy pleas by the Centre.
Please click on the image for a look at Perarivalan's release.
IMAGE: A G Perarivalan with his mother Arputham Ammal and others at a tea stall in Vellore, Tuesday, March 15, 2022, before heading home following his release on bail from the Puzhal jail after more than 30 years. Photograph: PTI Photo
Photograph curated by Anant Salvi/Rediff.com
Feature Presentation: Rajesh Alva/Rediff.com
