The State Government on Tuesday told the Madras High Court Bench here that it could not release the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case convicts without the consent of the Centre which, in turn, was waiting for the Supreme Court verdict in a case pending before the latter on the issue.
Additional Advocate General C. Manishankar made the submission before a Division Bench of Justices A. Selvam and P. Kalaiyarasan who were seized of individual habeas corpus petitions filed by two of the convicts – B. Robert Payas and Jayakumar in 2012 – for premature release.
“Unless the Central Government concurs for release of the convicts, we cannot do anything. We have written several letters too... but the Central Government says that since the matter is pending in the Supreme Court, they also cannot do anything on the issue as of now,” the AAG told the judges.
In his submissions, Additional Solicitor General G. Rajagopal said that the habeas corpus petitions pending in the court since 2012 had become infructuous in view of several developments that had taken place pursuant to the filing of the two cases and the matter now having reached the apex court.
Nevertheless, when the judges wanted to know from Senior Counsel R. Shanmugasundaram, representing the petitioners, if he was agreeable to wait until the Supreme Court takes a decision on the issue, he replied in the positive. Hence, further hearing on the two cases was adjourned to October 3.
