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Emissaries blame each other
for Rajakumar release delay

N Sathiya Moorthy in Madras

With the Supreme Court scheduled to hear the case on Tuesday, brigand Veerappan wants the criminal prosecution and revoked Terrorist And Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act detention orders against 126 associates in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu withdrawn, for him to free kidnapped Kannada matinee idol Dr Rajakumar.

Veerappan has thus done an about-turn, after raising hopes for the release of the thespian.

Veerappan's change in mood became clear with the arrival of the emissaries in Madras on Tuesday. Going by mutual suspicions, bordering on antagonism, the teams, led by Nakkeeran editor R R Gopal, and Tamil Nationalist Movement leader Pazha Nedumaran, arrived separately, with sources close to each side blaming each other.

While a section blames Nedumaran's presence for the setback, the other side says that the reported augmentation of armed forces outside the forests over the last two days upset Veerappan and his pan-Tamil associates.

"They became suspicious about the motives of the two state governments, and possible police action if and when Rajakumar is released."

However, the other side does not agree with this. "There is a mistaken notion about Nedumaran's role," said a source. "He did not go into the forests as an emissary of the government, like Gopal. His presence and advice was sought by TNLA associates of Veerappan inside the forests, and the government only facilitated his departure without surveillance. He could only be expected to serve TNLA interests, and his advice seemed to have changed Veerappan's mind and mood this time."

That the Tamil Nadu Government was convinced about Rajakumar's freedom became clear this time. Unlike earlier occasions, Chief Minister M Karunanidhi told newsmen on Monday evening that the release was expected ''either on Monday night or Tuesday''.

With ego clashes between the two factions of the negotiating team taking its toll, and the TNLA group in the forests reinforcing fears through Nedumaran's presence, Veerappan was convinced about the futility of freeing Rajakumar now.

While details of the discussions are not known, indications are that they veered round the possibility of the Supreme Court passing orders, upholding the decision of the two state governments to withdraw cases against the 126 Veerappan associates, including five TNLA-TNRF militants in Tamil Nadu jails.

"With the state governments reportedly amassing policemen in the region, Veerappan may have become suspicious, if not nervous."

According to the sources, Gopal is likely to meet Karunanidhi later in the day, to decide on the next course of action. By then, the SC would have concluded the day's hearing. Though a verdict is not expected, a clearer picture about its thinking may be available by the end of the day.

Sources said that Gopal may be ready to go into the forests once more. But he may not be interested in his being accompanied by others. To that extent, he chose to return to Madras, after the release of Rajakumar's son-in-law K A Govindaraj, on Monday night, rather than stay put in the forest periphery, awaiting instructions based on the SC hearing.

The sources said that Gopal rightly ignored the state governments' advice for him to stay put, as by coming to Madras, he could brief the chief minister on what exactly went wrong this time.

The Rajakumar Abduction: complete coverage
The saga of Veerappan

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