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Journalism of Courage
DMK President M Karunanidhi today demanded that the Tamil Nadu Cabinet pass a unanimous resolution urging President Pratibha Patil to reconsider the clemency petitions of three death row convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case.
“I congratulate them (AIADMK government) for taking the initiative in passing a resolution in the Assembly after witnessing an upsurge among Tamils. But it is important that the cabinet pass a similar resolution,” he told reporters on the sidelines of a private function.
The state Assembly on August 30 adopted unanimously a resolution moved by Chief Minister Jayalalithaa urging the President to reconsider rejection of the clemency petitions of Murugan,Santhan and Perarivalan,facing the gallows.
After the rejection of the mercy petitions,prison authorities had fixed September 9 as the date for the
execution of the three,lodged in Vellore Central Jail,but the Madras High Court on a petition from the convicts has stayed for eight weeks their hanging.
The convicts have cited “undue” delay in disposing their mercy pleas as ground for commutation of the capital punishment.
Jayalalithaa had charged Karunanidhi with adopting double standards by taking up the issue now while it was his cabinet that had recommended to the Governor in April,2000 to reject the mercy petitions of the three.
Asked about the continuing arrests of DMK men on land-grabbing charges,Karunanidhi said the police action reminded him of Emergency.
Alleging that the arrests of DMK men were “well-planned”,he said whether this would affect the party’s prospects in the coming local body polls would be known after the elections.
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