Awaiting TN governor’s nod to free 49 prisoners: Stalin in assembly

Stalin was replying to a Special Calling Attention Motion moved by AIADMK general secretary and Leader of Opposition Edappadi Palaniswami (EPS) on the plight of Muslim prisoners

Chennai: In a debate during the assembly session on the Muslim prisoners languishing in jail in Tamil Nadu, chief minister M K Stalin on Tuesday said that they are awaiting for Governor R N Ravi’s nod to release 49 prisoners, including 20 Muslims, who remain in prison even after completion of their life-term sentence.

Tamil Nadu chief minister M K Stalin on Tuesday said that till October 8, , as many as 335 life prisoners have been released of which nine are Muslims. (ANI)

Stalin was replying to a Special Calling Attention Motion moved by AIADMK general secretary and Leader of Opposition Edappadi Palaniswami (EPS) on the plight of Muslim prisoners. Given that the AIADMK recently exited their alliance with the BJP and is hoping to regain its lost support among minorities, Stalin wondered about EPS’s “sudden concern” for Muslims.

The DMK government had constituted a committee in December 2021, under retired judge N Athinathan, to address the issue of releasing prisoners, including those who are terminally ill, aged and those who have spent more than 20 years in jail. The committee submitted its report to the government in October 2022. “They recommended the release of 264 prisoners. Based on that, we chose 48 eligible prisoners, including 20 Muslims, and sent their files to the Governor on August 24, 2023, for his consent,”Stalin said. “Once the green signal is received from the Governor, we will release all of them.”

Till October 8, he said, as many as 335 life prisoners have been released of which nine are Muslims. “There is an attempt to portray that no Muslim prisoner has been released so far. I would like to inform the House that the Government will go by the law on this issue,” Stalin said.

In response to Stalin’s question on what the AIADMK government did for the release of Muslim prisoners, EPS said that it was his regime which made possible the release of seven convicts in the former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi assassination case under the present DMK government.