SC digs into bomb that killed former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi

Twenty-six years after former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated, the Supreme Court on Thursday wanted to know who manufactured and supplied the bomb that killed him.

A bench comprising Justices Ranjan Gogoi and Naveen Sinha, sought an explanation from the Centre regarding the investigation into the conspiracy behind the manufacture and supply of the bomb.

“We want Solicitor General or an Additional Solicitor General to tell us about the status of investigation on this point. What has been the result of such re-investigation or further investigation?” asked the bench, adjourning the matter to Wednesday next week.

The order was passed on a plea filed by one of the convicts - AG Perarivalan, who sought early release. Perarivalan was convicted of supplying a nine-volt battery for the bomb. Perarivalan’s counsel Gopal Sankarnarayan pointed out that the Multi Disciplinary Monitoring Agency (MDMA) tasked with investigating the case had not clarified how the bomb was made, who made it and how it was supplied.

Questioning the conviction on this ground, Sankarnarayan said a clarification on this front would go a long way in proving his client’s innocence. On May 1991, a female suicide bomber, wearing a belt strapped with explosives, killed Rajiv Gandhi in Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu