The Government defends that it complied with the law "to the letter" with the pardons and stresses that they served a greater purpose

MADRID, 25 May. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The Minister of the Presidency, Relations with the Courts and Democratic Memory, Félix Bolaños, defended this Wednesday the granting of pardons to pro-independence leaders convicted by the Government, which in his opinion complied with the law "to the letter".

In statements from the corridors of Congress, Bolaños has maintained that the pardons "are absolutely legal" and that, furthermore, they served a "greater purpose", to overcome the "unbearable tension" that was experienced in Catalonia, as he has indicated, and to initiate a new dialogue-based stage.

In this sense, Bolaños has stressed that the decision of the Supreme Court is only an admission for processing and that therefore it is not a decision on the merits of the matter. Finally, he has denied that the Government is concerned. "Not at all", he has responded when questioned about it.

Bolaños made these statements after this Tuesday the Supreme Court corrected its initial decision to reject the appeals filed against the pardons of the 'procés', because it considered that the appellants -among them PP, Vox and Ciudadanos- were not empowered to take this legal action for lacking a legitimate interest, and decided to admit them now for processing, which implies that it will study them to rule on the merits of the matter.

Finally, Bolaños stated that the new stage in the Central Government's relationship with Catalonia is based on dialogue, negotiation and agreement and that, therefore, the pardons fulfilled the purpose of making Catalonia today "a more habitable place ", is over.