DMK seeks Centre's response on Rajiv Gandhi murder convicts

New Delhi, March 9: DMK on Wednesday, March 9 sought an "immediate" response from the Centre on Tamil Nadu government's request for the release of seven life convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case.

"State Government of Tamil Nadu has written a letter to the Home Secretary, requesting him for the release, which the State Government has remitted. "The sentence of those seven life convicts -- Santhan, Murugan, Perarivalan, Nalini, Payas, Jayakumar and Ravichandran, who have been languishing in the prison for more than 24 years, has been remitted and they are to be released," Tiruchi Siva said during Zero Hour in Rajya Sabha.

Amid sloganeering by Congress members and interruptions by AIADMK members, Siva said the state government has written to the Centre for its views because Section 435 of the Criminal Procedure Code requires it to consult the Centre.

"I request the Central Government to respond to the request of the State Government...the release of the seven life convicts is very, very imminent...I think the Central Government's views are required immediately... They have to respond. I want the response of the Central Government," the DMK member said.

He said a five-judge Constitution bench of the Supreme Court while modifying its earlier interim order of July, 2014 has allowed the state governments to exercise their powers of remission to release life convicts.

In another Zero Hour mention, A Navaneethakrishnan (AIADMK) said Tamil Nadu Chief Minister has written a letter to the Prime Minister raising objection to the review petition filed before the Supreme Court by the central government regarding the entrance examination for medical admissions.

"The Central Government shall not interfere in state autonomy...There is no entrance test in Tamil Nadu for medical admissions...Poor students will be affected. "We request the Central Government to withdraw the review petition and not introduce any entrance examination for medical admissions," he said.

Congress MP T Subbarami Reddy raised the issue of disruption of health services in several government hospitals of Delhi as nurses went on strike and mass casual leave to protest against the recommendations of the Seventh Pay Commission.

PTI