Rajiv Gandhi Assassination Case convict Nalini allegedly threatens to end her life in prison

Nalini Sriharan, who is serving a life sentence in connection with the assassination of former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, allegedly threatened to kill herself following a spat with a co-prisoner on Monday, reports said.

According to reports, Nalini and another life convict housed in the cell of the Special Prison for Women in Vellore fought with each other.

The other life convict complained to the jailer about the incident and wanted to be shifted from the block, reports said.

Nalini, who has been in prison for more than two decades, allegedly threatened to end her life after the jailer went to the cell to conduct an inquiry.

Besides Nalini, others convicted for life in the case are her husband Murugan, Suthenthira Raja alias Santhan, AG Perarivalan, Robert Payas, Jayakumar and Ravichandran. Four of the convicts - Sriharan, Santhan, Robert Payas and Jayakumar - are Sri Lankan nationals.

All the seven were convicted by a special TADA court for their role in Gandhi’s assassination on May 21, 1991, by a woman LTTE suicide bomber during an election rally at nearby Sriperumbudur near Chennai and sentenced to death.

The death sentence was later commuted to life imprisonment.

The Tamil Nadu government had in February this year informed Madras High Court that the state has recommended the release of all the seven life convicts of Rajiv Gandhi assassination case to the governor as it lacks the power to order such remission.

“The state cabinet has only made a recommendation to the governor. Only the governor has to make a decision. The governor cannot be questioned by the state for not acting on its recommendation,” public prosecutor A Natarajan had said then.

Natarajan had made the submission on a plea by Nalini Sriharan, seeking to declare her detention as illegal since the governor had failed to order her release based on the September 9, 2018, recommendation of the state cabinet.

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