Wish Rahul had named Afzal Guru also: Mehbooba Mufti

Reacting to Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi's statement against the decision of Tamil Nadu Government to release all the convicted assassinators of former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, People Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti on Wednesday questioned Rahul's silence over Afzal Guru's hanging.

"I wish that Rahul had named Afzal Guru also. The way Afzal guru was hanged in a hurry to satisfy some certain political parties. I wish he had spoken at that time also," Mufti told media here.

Rahul on Wednesday said that he is saddened by the decision of Tamil Nadu Government.

"Rajiv Gandhi's killers are being set free, I am saddened by this. I am personally against the death penalty but this is not about my father," Rahul had said.

"If a Prime Minister's killers can be released, what kind of justice should the common man expect? My fight is for justice for the poor" he added.

On Wednesday, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa had said that the state cabinet will apply powers applicable to it under the Constitution to release the three convicted assassinators of Rajiv Gandhi -- Murugan, Santhan and Perarivalan -- if the Central Government failed to act on the same within the next three days.

She also said that the other convicts who had been sentenced to life imprisonment, namely, Nalini, Jayakumar, Robert Paes and Ravichandran, would also be released.

The Supreme Court had on Tuesday commuted the death sentence of three men to life in prison.

Santhan, Murugan and Perarivalan had petitioned the apex court against their death sentence, arguing that there had been an exceptional delay in a decision on their mercy pleas.

A bench headed by Chief Justice P Sathasivam delivered its judgement on these mercy pleas.

Rajiv Gandhi was killed by a suicide bomber at an election rally in Sriperumbedur on May 21, 1991. Fourteen other people also lost their lives in that blast.

The mercy petitions of the convicts were sent to the President of India, the last stage in the process of appeals, in 2000, and were rejected 11 years later. Their hanging was stayed in 2011 on the orders of the Madras High Court.