Rajiv Gandhi assassination case convict Nalini attempted suicide in jail, claims lawyer

Nalini Sriharan, India’s longest-serving woman prisoner and one of the seven convicts in the sensational Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, attempted suicide on Monday night following a quarrel with the jailer, her lawyer claimed on Tuesday.

Nalini is serving her life term at the Central Prison in Vellore, 140 km from here, for the past 29 years for her role in the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in Sriperumbudur near here on May 21, 1991.

P Pugalendhi, Nalini’s counsel, told DH that the life convict attempted to end her life on Monday night following a quarrel with the jailer, Allirani. There was no official response from the Prisons Department till the time of publishing the article. After the incident, Nalini has now decided to seek transfer from Vellore to Puzhal prison in Chennai on safety grounds.

Explaining the incident, Pugalendhi said Nalini and her jail mate, who is also a life convict, had differences between them.

Pugalendhi said this was the first time Nalini had attempted suicide in the last 29 years. “The incident took place before the jailer,” he said, adding that Nalini is likely to talk to her mother via phone on Wednesday. He added that a formal letter seeking Nalini’s transfer from Vellore jail was being sent to Home Secretary S K Prabhakar and DGP J K Tripathy.

Nalini is among the seven persons who are currently serving life terms in the case that sent shockwaves across the country.

Though the Tamil Nadu Cabinet had recommended their release from jail, the proposal is pending with Governor Banwarilal Purohit. The Centre has been maintaining for long that Nalini and others cannot be released from prison without its concurrence.

Numerous requests and petitions by her for early release made in the past decade have also been rejected by the higher judiciary. Nalini had for the first time came out on parole last year to arrange for her daughter’s wedding.