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First reporter to interview Veerappan still in prison

"I am in jail as I helped secure the safe release of Rajakumar from Veerappan," said journalist Sivasubramaniam in Kollegal, Karnataka. He was speaking to rediff.com in the premises of the local sessions court.

"I helped both the governments [of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu] to secure the Kannada matinee idol's release from the brigand. [But] they broke the promise they had given to us when we were asked to enter the forest to negotiate the safe release of the actor," he added.

Sivasubramaniam is in jail on charges of supplying arms and ammunitions to Veerappan and was produced before the court for a hearing. The court postponed the hearing to September 30.

Sivasubramaniam was the first journalist to establish contact with the brigand in the early 1990s and meet the brigand alone. He was working with the bi-weekly magazine Nakkeeran published from Chennai.

He later paired with his editor, R R Gopal, for an interview with Veerappan. They were the first journalists to take photographs of the brigand and were official emissaries on several occasions.

The Karnataka police claim that Sivasubramaniam was arrested near a forest in Chamarajanagar, but his family and editor Gopal say he was abducted from his residence and framed by the police.

He now refuses to go as an emissary for the release of former Karnataka minister H Nagappa. "Even if the government wants me to go and releases me, I will not go. When I did the same thing last time, I landed in prison. Why should I take one more risk?" he asked.

Elaborate security arrangements were made for Sivasubramaniam's presence in the court. The Tamil Nadu police had bought him from the Coimbatore jail and will retain his custody for certain cases pending against him.

H Nagappa Abduction: Complete coverage
The Abduction of Dr Rajakumar
The Hunt for Veerappan

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