Not unhappy with move, says PC, angers Cong
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
February 20, 2014 (Page 9)
New Delhi: Finance minister P Chidambaram said he was “not unhappy” with Tamil Nadu government’s decision to release the convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, a remark that drew a sharp rebuke from Congress.
Chidambaram, who hails from TN, said in a TV interview that the grief of the assassination was irreparable while the decision to release the convicts was based on the conclusion arrived at by the court and the state that imprisonment of two decades was sufficient.
“I am not unhappy,” Chidambaram said when asked for his reaction to the decision. Asked to explain his comment, he said, “Our grief arises out of the brutal killing of Rajiv Gandhi and if the court says that imprisonment of 22 years is sufficient and leaves it to the executive government to decide, that’s it.”
Congress dismissed Chidambaram’s comments as his “personal view”.
Chidambaram also did not see any cynical politics in the state’s release order.
But in sharp contrast to the senior minister’s opinion, an official statement from Congress general secretary Ajay Maken said the party felt the release of convicts was guided solely by political considerations to suit sectarian vested interests which is against the law.
