One Straw that Peter Bleach won’t clutch

Bleach, replying to a questionnaire from The Indian Express, said, “I approached the British Government many many times. I expect nothing from Jack Straw. He has refused to take action against British police officers indicted for perjury by the trial judge, so I have no reason to believe he has any respect for justice,” said Bleach.

Straw, incidentally, will be visiting Calcutta on September 9.

When asked if he had felt discriminated against after the Latvians were pardoned and released, Bleach said: “Very much so. This is no longer about whether I am guilty or innocent, it’s about equality of justice under Article 14 of the Indian Constitution. The only difference between the crew and I is that they are Russians. I am British. They are free, I am not. It is blatant racial discrimination.”

The British national also said that appeals for his pardon had been made to the President of India both by his mother and Deepak Prahladka, a legal activist, but there had been no reply.

R K Khanna, Bleach’s lawyer, fumed at the differential treatment meted out to his client by the Indian Government. “We ask for equal treatment which is a fundamental right. Bleach and the Latvians were charged of and tried for the same offence. They were sentenced for the same offence,” he pointed out. The lawyer also pointed out that while the Latvians didn’t understand a word of English, it was the suave Bleach who had communicated the prisoners’ plight to the world. “While the Russians got the benefit of it, Bleach remained inside,” Khanna said.