TN government decides to recommend release of Gandhi killers
Chennai, Sep 9: The Tamil Nadu government on Sunday decided to recommend to Governor Banwarilal Purohit the release of seven convicts serving life term for the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, Fisheries Minister D. Jayakumar said.
The decision was taken at a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister K. Palaniswami.
Jayakumar told reporters that the decision was taken after the Supreme Court asked Purohit to consider the mercy petition of A.G. Perarivalan, serving life term for the 1991 assassination of Gandhi, for release under Article 161 of the Constitution.
Jayakumar said though the apex court had given its order in the petition filed by Perarivalan, the state government had decided to recommend to the Governor his release as well as six other convicts as they had also sent their mercy petitions.
The other six are V. Sriharan alias Murugan, T. Suthendraraja alias Santhan, Jayakumar, Robert Payas, Ravichandran and Nalini Sriharan, wife of Sriharan alias Murugan. They include both Indians and Sri Lankans.
All seven have been in prison since 1991, the year a woman Tamil Tiger suicide bomber blew up Rajiv Gandhi at an election rally near Chennai.
Jayakumar said the Supreme Court was the highest court and the cabinet decision was taken based on the basis of its decision.
He said the Governor had to agree with the cabinet decision.
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) was blamed for the assassination of Gandhi. The Sri Lankan military crushed the Tamil Tigers in 2009.
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Bengaluru: Four arrested in prostitution racket; four women rescued
Bengaluru (PTI): Four people, among them two women, were arrested for running a prostitution racket from rented houses in parts of the city, police said on Monday.
With their arrest, police also rescued four women who were allegedly forced into prostitution, they said.
The arrests were made following tip-offs received by the Central Crime Branch’s Women Protection Unit on different dates, indicating that prostitution activities were being carried out in rented houses located in Padmanabhanagar, RK Layout, Sundarnagar, and NGF Layout, police said.
Based on information provided by informants, raids were conducted at these locations on different dates, they said.
“During the operations, four women involved in prostitution were rescued. In connection with the case, a total of four individuals, among them two women who were allegedly forcing others into prostitution, were taken into custody,” a statement issued by the office of Bengaluru Police Commissioner Seemant Kumar Singh said.
Upon interrogation, the accused allegedly confessed that they contacted men seeking prostitution services over the phone and arranged for them to visit rented houses, where illegal activities were carried out for monetary gain, it said.
Cases have been registered against the accused at Subramanyapura, Jalahalli, and Jnanabharathi police stations, and further investigation is in progress, police added.
