NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday said that AG Perarivalan isn’t interested in the question of law but is concerned with his liberty. The top court is hearing the case relating to the mercy plea of Perarivalan, one of the seven convicts serving a life sentence in the case related to the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in 1991.
The top court said this when Additional Solicitor General KM Natraj appearing for the central government said that the court should wait for the President to decide on Perarivalan’s mercy plea.
“Reference has been made by the Governor to the President. The President has the option to send it back to the Governor or take a decision. The file has been sent to him recently,” he said.
The Centre has been defending the Tamil Nadu Governor’s decision to refer the mercy plea to the President. He has submitted that in certain instances, the President and not the Governor is the competent authority.
The bench comprising Justice L Nageswara Rao and Justice BR Gavai said that the Centre hasn’t responded on the question it had raised last time.
“There’s a hanging sword over his head. He has had good conduct too...Why don't we release him? We don't find it reasonable. It is not about what the President has to do on the reference. It is about the issue of Governor’s power to refer the cabinet decision to him,” the top court said.
The court questioned him on the file, saying it cannot be called 'recent' when it was sent in January 2021 and now it is May 2022.
“We cannot shut our eyes to something that is happening against the Constitution. We have to follow our Bible - the Constitution of India,” Justice L Nageswara Rao said.
Senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi appearing for the state of Tamil Nadu argued that the question is not for the President to decide right now.
“...President has an independent power under 72 of their constitution, how can he come in 162 of the constitution (Governor’s power),” he said.
The top court will now heard the matter on Tuesday and has asked the central government to put the document on record on the referral order by the Governor.
The court said that (Tamil Nadu government and Perarivalan) are raising important constitutional issues of destroying federalism by bringing the central government into it.
“ ... We will place the matter for hearing. The decision of the President will not have any bearing on us for sure...You produce the file. We are going to decide...,” the bench said.
The top court on March 9 had granted him bail taking into account the fact that he has already spent more than 30 years in prison.
The Tamil Nadu government had recommended Perarivalan’s release in September 2018.