CHENNAI: The Madras High Court on Tuesday told Nalini, one of the convicts in former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi assassination, to approach the Supreme Court for bail and wondered what provision of law provides for granting bail to a convict.
When a writ petition filed by Nalini, seeking premature release without the consent of the Governor, came up for hearing before the First Bench of Chief Justice Munishwar Nath Bhandari and Justice D Bharatha Chakravarthy, her counsel M Radhakrishnan mentioned a petition seeking bail on the lines of the Supreme Court relief to another convict, AG Perarivalan.
Pointing out that provisions of the law do allow bail in case of registration of a case or arrest or suspension of sentence, the bench asked what provision provides for granting of bail to a convict when there is no special leave petition pending.
Radhakrishnan referred to a particular judgment of the Supreme Court allowing bail to convicts if mercy plea is pending, but he could not provide a copy when the high court bench sought it.When he pitched for grant of bail on the lines of the order of the Supreme Court in Perarivalan’s case, the judges said they can’t give such a relief because the order of the apex court is not a statute.
The petitioner can approach the Supreme Court since it is supreme to all courts, they said. While declining to hear further on the bail plea, the judges agreed to take up the writ petition seeking premature release without consent of the Governor on Thursday.