Afzal Guru

President Pratibha Patil, who turned down the mercy petitions of three Rajiv Gandhi assassination convicts, has been advised by the Centre to reject a similar plea filed by Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru. Ever since Parliament attack accused Afzal Guru’s wife filed the mercy plea, the case has been highly politicized-—with the BJP accusing the government of dragging its feet and the Centre arguing that it was only proceeding on a case-bycase basis. The BJP has linked the delay in forwarding an opinion to the President to the UPA’s “soft -on -terror” policy, and for considerations of vote bank politics. The Congress will be rid of political millstone as and when the sentence is carried out. On Wednesday, the Congress sought to play down the decision of the Centre, with its spokesperson Rashid Alvi saying, “It is also part of a system. The matter is with the President. Just like it is not proper to say anything on sub-judice cases, the same holds true with issues submitted to the President.” While the Congress has always countered the BJP’s charge by reminding the saffron party of the infamous Kandahar swap of three terrorists, it has been uncomfortable about the Guru mercy plea that has been pending for nearly five years.