New Delhi: Slamming Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa for demanding the release of seven convicts in former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination case, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Subramanian Swamy on Wednesday dubbed the AIADMK chief as perfidious and accused her of being unpatriotic.
Swamy told ANI that the request made by Jayalalithaa is against the nation as the convicts booked for Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination were terrorists, who should not be spared.
“Rajiv Gandhi was the prime minister of India and the LTTE is a foreign organisation, it’s a terrorist organisation. They come to India say we don’t like Rajiv Gandhi’s policy and kill him, is it that simple? Can we accept that? It is the most unpatriotic thing if anyone says anything in this regard,” said Swamy.
“Rajiv Gandhi did not die alone 18 policemen died. Jayalalithaa does not have a drop of patriotic blood in her, very selfish women she only thinks of herself. This is against the nation. Tamil people will reject this, they are all patriotic people they don’t want this. The punishment has been reduced from death sentence to lifetime imprisonment and now they want that the guilty should be freed, it cannot be done,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Congress Party condemned Jayalalithaa’s plea and said that she was trying to interfere with criminal justice in this country.
“The Tamil Nadu Government was trying to interfere with criminal justice in this country when the matter is sub-judice and that too of a martyr, who dies at the hands of terrorists is unfortunate. The Tamil Nadu Government tried to do this with an eye on the forthcoming elections. The Central Government has out rightly rejected it and for the right reasons. When you interfere with criminal justice in this country, history will not spare you how powerful you may be as that’s the truth of history,” said Congress spokesperson Tom Vadakkan.
The Centre has rejected the Tamil Nadu Government’s proposal to release the seven convicts in Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination case.
This is the second time in two years that the state has written to the Centre seeking its views on its decision to remit their sentence.
The first letter was sent during the UPA government’s tenure in February 2014.
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) had earlier told the Tamil Nadu Government that it has no authority to release the prisoners since the matter is sub-judice in the Supreme Court. (ANI)