Perarivalan's mother alleges sons's imprisonment "unjustified"

Mother of a death row convict in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, today alleged that the imprisonment of her son for over 22 years was unjustified "since the conviction was based on his confessional statement that lacked clarity and facts".
Talking to reporters here, Arputhammal referred to a documentary by People's Movement Against Death Penalty, in which S P Thiyagarajan, former CBI officer involved in the investigation into the case, had purportedly stated he had not recorded verbatim A G Perarivalan,'s statement, and said that it established that her son had no role in the conspiracy.
Thiyagarajan had said he had not recorded the part where the accused had told him, he (Perarivalan) was not aware why he was asked to purchase the batteries.

Perarivalan alias Arivu was sentenced to death for buying battery cells to make the belt bomb used to kill the former Prime Minister during an election rally at Sriperumbudur here in May 1991.
"We finally see a ray of hope, my family is happy. We welcome Thiagarajan's statement. This established our stand that my son had no role in the conspiracy and knew nothing about the assassination", she said.
Perarivalan and two other death row convicts in the case, Murugan and Santhan, have challenged the rejection of their mercy pleas by then President Pratibha Patil.