The Madras High Court on Wednesday questioned the Centre as to why it was against allowing convicts in the former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s assissination case to make a video call to their relatives abroad. The court asked how a video call by convicts Nalini and her husband Murugan to pass on condolences to his grieving mother in Sri Lanka would pose a security threat to the investigation.
The Madras High Court was hearing a plea moved by Nalini's mother Padma seeking to allow Nalini and Murugan to talk to their relatives in London and Sri Lanka through a video call following his father’s death in the island nation.
A division bench comprising Justices M Kirubakaran and VM Velumani wryly observed that the convicts were merely going to enquire about Murugan’s father’s death and were not going to discuss the US Presidential Elections. The High Court made the observations after the Additional Solicitor General G Karthikeyan said that allowing Nalini and Murugan to speak to their kin abroad through video call will affect the Multidisciplinary Monitoring Agency (MDMA) probe into the foreign links behind the former PM’s assasination.
The bench, however, pointed out that the couple will speak to their relatives in Tamil under the watch of officials and if they find any offence the call can be disconnected.
Advocate Radhakrishanan, appearing for Nalini and Murugan, submitted that the MDMA probe was set up for 20 years and the timeframe ended in 2015. The court also did not provide an extension so it cannot be functional, he argued.
Noting this Madras HC sought to know whether the MDMA is functional or if the investigation period has been extended. The Bench told the Centre to reply to the questions by August 19.
Earlier, the Tamil Nadu government also opposed allowing the convicts to talk to their kin abroad. The Tamil Nadu government said that there was no provision in Tamil Nadu Prison Rules or government order to support this. The court then asked the Union Ministry of External Affairs to consider the matter.