R P Ravichandran, one of the six convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case who was released from prison on Saturday, has urged the people of north India to see them as victims instead of killers.
After his release from Madurai Central Prison, Ravichandran, who was in jail for three decades, told ANI that time will judge them as "innocents."
"The people of north India should see us as victims instead of terrorists or killers. Time and power determine who is a terrorist or a freedom fighter but time will judge us as innocent, even if we bear the blame for being terrorists," he added.
The Supreme Court on Friday had ordered the release of the six convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, following which Ravichandran and five others, including Nalini Sriharan, were released from jail on Saturday.
Ravichandran was out on parole when the Supreme Court verdict came. He was brought to the Madurai prison from his native place in the Thoothukudi district on Saturday. He completed the formalities before leaving the prison an hour later.
He also thanked the Tamil Nadu government and the Dravidian parties, stating his release would not have been possible without the support of the past and present Tamil Nadu governments. He also thanked the Centre and his advocates.
On his plans, Ravichandran said his family and friends came first and he would take a decision after discussing them with all. He also added they were "easy targets" and the real forces behind the Rajiv assassination were powerful.
Not meeting Gandhis
Meanwhile, another convict Nalini, who was released on Saturday, thanked the people of Tamil Nadu and the central governments for their help.
She said she wanted to be with her family, adding that they have been waiting for her for a long time and she now wants to be with them. "I will go wherever my husband goes. We were separated for 32 years. Our family kept waiting for us," she added.
On whether she would want to meet the members of the Gandhi family, Nalini said there was no such possibility. "I am not planning to meet anyone from the Gandhi family. We are under the case. There is no possibility of me meeting them. I want to thank the State and Central governments. I thank the state government for giving me parole, so I could go to the Supreme Court and try my level best,” she said.
She was the longest-serving woman prisoner in the country and was arrested in 1991 when she was 24-year-old.
