Indian court stays execution of Rajiv Gandhi’s killers
Daughter of India’s Congress Party President Sonia Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi-Vadhera (R) prays along with her brother Rahul Gandhi at the cremation site and memorial to their father and slain former Indian premier Rajiv Gandhi in New Delhi on May 21, 2008 marking the 17th death anniversary of the assassinated leader. Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated 21 May 1991 in Tamil Nadu by Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) activists.
The Madras High Court issued an eight-week stay delaying the execution of the three men convicted of killing former Indian prime minister Rajiv Gandhi in 1991, the Indian Express reports.
The Indian president earlier denied a plea for mercy for the three killers, all members of the Sri Lanka-based Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.
The convicts were scheduled to be hanged on September 9 before the court granted the stay. The delay came with an ironic twist, as the men had argued that the 11-year delay in deciding their fate was a violation of their right to a speedy trial.