TN parties spar over demand to free Muslim inmates jailed for 1998 Coimbatore blasts

Tamil Nadu political parties have been at odds over a demand to free 36 Muslim inmates who had been held for more than 20 years in connection with the 1998 Coimbatore serial explosions, which claimed 58 lives.

The opposition AIADMK, which lost badly at the polls in both the 2021 Assembly election and the 2019 Lok Sabha election due to its association with the BJP, has called for the release of the Muslim detainees out of sympathy. Given that the demand was made shortly after the AIADMK and BJP split, the ruling DMK has questioned the timing of it.

The leader of the AIADMK and a former chief minister, Edappadi K. Palaniswami, made a strong case for the release of the prisoners during the recently concluded Assembly session. The prisoners have been detained for more than 20 to 25 years. Palaniswami's party recently left the NDA to lead a front in Tamil Nadu in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. He said that 16 of them received life sentences, while the other two received sentences that varied.

He stated that the prisoners were either old and ailing or had relatives who had asked for their release due to financial hardships. The Coimbatore bombings of 1998 left over 200 people injured and 58 dead.

Speaking on a special call attention motion in the House on the issue of the premature release of long-serving prisoners, Palaniswami said that representatives of Muslim organizations had informed him that a government order issued in November 2021 had impeded the release of the Muslim prisoners. The AIADMK, along with other parties like the Congress, CPI, CPM, Manithaneya Makkal Katchi (MMK), a Muslim outfit led by Prof. M.H. Jawaharullah, and the PMK, had filed the motion.

In December 2019, the Rajya Sabha passed the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) thanks to the efforts of the AIADMK, who also sided with the BJP. Moreover, the AIADMK remained silent over the BJP's proposed NRC.

In light of this, many people found it ironic that Palaniswami was now fervently advocating for the release of Muslim detainees for humanitarian reasons during the contentious House debate.

Chief Minister M.K. Stalin disputed the notion "sought to be created by some" that the DMK had not moved to award remission to the 36 after the party took back control in May 2021. He also questioned what had caused the AIADMK's "sudden love" for the Muslim convicts. Stalin noted that the AIADMK, which had ruled for ten years prior, had done little to address the matter, especially after they had “blindly supported” the BJP on important topics such as the CAA-NRC.

Stalin stated that the state government appointed a six-member panel in December 2021, led by retired Madras High Court judge Justice N. Authinathan, in response to the plight of many lifers who have been imprisoned for more than 20 years and are suffering from old age, declining physical and mental health, and disabilities. The panel's goal is to review all cases involving remission in accordance with Supreme Court decisions and current legislation.

Stalin stated that 264 life sentences held in various Tamil Nadu jails were to be released early after the Authinathan panel recommended doing so in its report, which was turned in to the state in October 2022.

After taking into account the panel's recommendations, the government decided in August 2023 to release 49 life sentences, 20 of which were held by Muslims. This decision coincided with the DMK founder-leader C.N. Annadurai's 115th birthday on September 15, according to Stalin. The chief minister stated that they would be released as soon as the consent was received, but the governor had not yet approved the paperwork.