Sonia Gandhi want's the President to revoke Nalini's death sentence. Nalini wasinvolved in the murder of Rajiv Gandhi. She is the mother of a seven-year-old girl. SoniaGandhi's humane gesture has been widely acclaimed.
If the President heeds her, only three persons will hang for the murder of RajivGandhi. Two were hanged for the murder of Indira Gandhi. No person was hanged for themurder of 2,733 Sikhs in Delhi after Indira Gandhi was killed.
The Sikhs were killed in 1984 because the mobs were assured police protection. Thearmy offered to restore order within hours. It was curtly rebuffed by the government.
But the real guilt did not lie with the mobs. It lay with the conspirators whomasterminded the genocide. Indira Gandhi's murder was the excuse for the genocide. Hermurder, the genocide, and the sustained TV propaganda which followed, appeared to be partof a single conspiracy. This conspiracy gave a political novice like Rajiv Gandhi thelargest mandate in the history of free India.
Who were the conspirators? Justice Thakkar probed Indira Gandhi's murder. He wrotethat "the needle of suspicion" pointed at R.K. Dhawan.
Dhawan had been out of favour with Rajiv Gandhi. After the Thakkar Report, Rajivrehabilitated Dhawan despite the suspicion that he was part of the conspiracy to killRajiv's mother. Rajiv also amended the Constitution to suppress the Thakkar Report.
To scotch conspiracy theories the government needed another prosecution. So KeharSingh, a friend of Beant Singh, was hanged. There was no evidence against Kehar. Yet theSupreme Court passed the death sentence. Later it advised the President that he couldcommute the sentence if there was fresh evidence.
The court refused permission to cross-examine Dhawan. He was in charge of the PM'sappointments roster. Hadn't someone changed Mrs Gandhi's original appointment timings? Bythe original schedule, wouldn't the assassins have been off duty when the PM came out? Wewill never know. Dhawan could not be cross-examined under oath.
As Rajiv's secretary, Dhawan was happy. As the new chairman of the Law Commission,Justice Thakkar was happy. As the PM with the largest mandate, Rajiv was happy.
The Sikh widows and orphans were not happy. They're still not happy.
You can damn the poor
Without a hitch
If you just make sure
To serve the rich!
