Supreme Court adjourns hearing on plea seeking premature release of Nalini

The Supreme Court adjourned to November 11 the hearing on a petition seeking the premature release of Nalini Sriharan, who is serving a life sentence in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case. A bench of Justices BR Gavai and BV Nagarathna adjourned the matter as it was busy with a partial hearing. The Tamil Nadu government had earlier supported the premature release of Rajiv Gandhi assassination convicts Sriharan and RP Ravichandran, saying their 2018 advice for life imprisonment is binding on the governor.

The state government told the top court that in a cabinet meeting held on September 9, 2018, it had considered the mercy petitions of the seven convicts in the case and had recommended to the governor, in exercise of its powers, the remission of their life imprisonment. Sriharan, Ravichandran, Santhan, Murugan, AG Perarivalan, Robert Payas and Jayakumar have been sentenced to life imprisonment and have spent more than 23 years in jail.

The state government had said that it is competent to take a decision on the petition filed by Sriharan and Ravichandran under Article 161 and the decision of the state cabinet on September 9, 2018 is final and the Governor can consider it.

Sriharan has been lodged in a special prison for women in Vellore for over 30 years, while Ravichandran is lodged in the Central Jail in Madurai and has been jailed for 37 years, including 29 years of imprisonment and remission. On September 26, the top court had sought response of the Center and the Tamil Nadu government on a plea seeking the premature release of Sriharan and Ravichandran. Both have challenged a June 17 order of the Madras High Court, which had dismissed their plea for early release, and cited the apex court's decision ordering the release of co-convict Perarivalan.

The Supreme Court on Thursday asked the Center to ensure that the Indian Embassy in Kenya provides all possible assistance to a woman in securing custody of her son from her husband, who had cheated the judiciary in a custody battle here. Perry Kansagra, a Kenyan national of Indian origin, has already been convicted of contempt by the apex court on July 11, as he did not return to the apex court despite assurances and securing custody of his son from his estranged wife.