Congress to file petition in SC against release of Rajiv Gandhi assassination convicts

Congress will file a plea in the Supreme Court this week challenging its decision to release the six convicts of the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, party sources said on Monday.

The party's decision came days after the Narendra Modi government moved the apex court seeking a review of its order for premature release of the convicts Nalini Sriharan, R P Ravichandran, Santhan, Murugan, Robert Payas and Jayakumar.

"A fresh review application challenging the Supreme Court decision to release the convicts on the grounds set out in the order will be filed on behalf of the party in the next few days," a senior leader said.

Sources said senior lawyer and Congress Rajya Sabha MP Abhishek Manu Singhvi is preparing the petition to be filed in the Supreme Court and that it will be filed "very shortly".

Also read | Timeline of events in Rajiv Gandhi assassination case

After the November 11 judgement, the Congress has come out against it saying it was “most unfortunate” that the Supreme Court “did not act in consonance” with the “spirit of the country” when it ordered the release of six convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination.

The party views the judgement as “totally unacceptable and completely erroneous" and had said that it never agreed with the views of Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on the matter, including intervening to commute the death sentence of one of the convicts Nalini.

"The Congress Party criticises it clearly and finds it wholly untenable. It is most unfortunate that the Supreme Court has not acted in consonance with the spirit of India on this issue," Congress General Secretary (Communications) Jairam Ramesh said in a statement on November 11.

Addressing a press conference, Singhvi had then said, the message we were sending to the world was about the benefits of India’s judicial magnitude and largesse we extend to the killers, forgetting their nature of crime. He said the party has no confusion in its stand that the killers of a former Prime Minister should not be released and it sends the wrong signal.

“The assassination of a former Prime Minister stands on a totally different footing. Irrespective of political colour such a person is reflective of the insignia of the sovereignty of the country. In that sense, a fatal attack on any Prime Minister, former or sitting, is an attack on the very sovereignty and integrity of India and cannot be dealt with on normal administrative considerations,” he had said.