SC asks TN to look into Veerappan's brother's plea

The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the Tamil Nadu government to decide within four weeks a plea by slain forest brigand Veerappan’s brother Mathaiyan for his premauture release.

He claimed that he was not considered for premauture release despite a direction by the Madras High Court on December 16, 2015. Lodged in Salem jail, the petitioner is serving life term. He was arrested in 1987.

The court disposed of the petition filed through advocate S D Dwarkanath for direction to the state to exercise its power under Article 161 of the Constitution for remission of his sentence.

It told the state government to take a decision in Mathaiyan’s case and intimate him. 70-year-old Mathaiyan had cited a government order from 1994 by which the state had granted the release of other life convicts who completed 20 years of imprisonment on humanitarian grounds.