Fear of retribution preventing Veerappan from giving up?

By Laigh A.Khan

MYSORE, AUG. 2. If anything, the recent gunning down of dacoit queen-turned-Samajwadi party MP, Phoolan Devi, right in front of her house in Delhi might raise fresh doubts about the likelihood of the bandit Veerappan coming out of the forests and surrendering to the authorities.

It is no secret that Veerappan, who is said to have smuggled sandalwood worth more than Rs 100 crore, killed 2,000 elephants for their valuable tusks, and snuffed the life out, of least, 130 people including police officials, had nurtured the illusion of joining the mainstream after laying down arms and facing a trial in the Phoolan Devi style. But, the mortal fear of being gunned down by enemies after his surrender is said to have forced him to keep in abeyance the option of laying down arms.

With Phoolan Devi having met her death in much the same fashion as dreaded by the forest brigand, the possibility of securing his surrender -- he has been on the run eluding the police dragnet for almost 15 years now-- appears to be even more remote. The noted wildlife photographer, Dr. Krupakar, who spent 27 days in Veerappan's captivity after he was abducted in October 1997 along with fellow photographer Mr. Senani and a couple of forest officials, told The Hindu that the brigand had sought to make out a case for him to lead a normal life based on the concessions given to Phoolan Devi.

When Veerappan came close to surrendering soon after their abduction in 1997, Mr. Krupakar recalled that the brigand had put a condition that he be allowed to keep a weapon in self defence, lest he would become the target of a revengeful policeman's bullet.

The killing of Phoolan Devi by assailants suspected to be avenging the Behmai massacre in which 22 Thakurs were done to death by the former dacoit queen, may have reinforced Veerappan's fears, Mr. Krupakar said. "He felt vulnerable to a policeman's bullets" when he spoke to me," he added.

Mr. Krupakar pointed out that Veerappan did not trust policemen. "He kept referring to the death of his brother Arjunan and held the police responsible for his death in police custody.

Mr. Krupakar sought to make it clear that Veerappan had no ambition to become a minister. He only wanted a pardon, and to lead a normal life as a farmer. "He wondered aloud why he was not allowed to lead a normal life when persons like Phoolan Devi could," Mr. Krupakar said adding that Veerappan did not understand the nitty gritty of law and the Constitution. "He even referred to the `freedom' enjoyed by the former Prime Minister, Mr. P.V.Narasimha Rao, and the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, Ms. Jayalalithaa, when cases were pending against them."

The Inspector-General of Police (Southern Range), Mr. Srivastav, who had headed the STF a couple of years ago, told The Hindu that Veerappan was keen on a film being made on his life on the lines of Shekhar Kapoor's Bandit Queen, which was based on Phoolan Devi's life. He said the evidence in the form of a diary recovered from the body of Baby Veerappan a few years ago suggested that Veerappan wished for a film to be made on his life, Mr. Srivastav added.

However, Mr. Srivastav, (who is from Uttar Pradesh, where the Chambal ravines are located), said that a parallel could not be drawn between Phoolan Devi and Veerappan. ``Phoolan Devi was a victim of exploitation and oppression by the upper castes unlike Veerappan, who is himself an oppressor.''

Besides, Mr. Srivastav said there was no proposal before the State Government for granting amnesty or pardon to Veerappan.

But the Tamil nationalist movement leader, Mr. P.Nedumaran, and the Editor of the Tamil bi-weekly Nakkeeran, Mr. Gopalan, who acted as emissaries during the abduction of the Kannada matinee idol, Mr. Rajkumar, a year ago, are still trying to negotiate with the authorities on the "surrender" of Veerappan.

Mr. Krupakar recalled how he tried to persuade Veerappan to surrender when he was in the bandit's captivity in October 1997. He wanted to surrender before the authorities in return for amnesty. But, we convinced Veerappan that his demands could not be met, and he should go through the legal process after his surrender.

"Veerappan is under the impression that his life will not be safe in the hands of policemen," Mr. Krupakar said. "Hence, we suggested to him that he surrender before the Chief Minister. We advised him to tone down his demands and place them before the Chief Minister in a humble way. And he did act accordingly in a cassette addressed to the then Chief Minister, J H Patel."

After their release, Mr. Krupakar and Mr. Senani met Mr. Patel, the then Minister for Forests, Mr. Nagamarapalli, and others who were clearly in favour of securing Veerappan's surrender.

But Mr. Krupakar revealed that senior police officials, including the present Director-General of Police, Mr. V.V.Bhaskar, and the Additional Director-General of Police, Dr. Ramanujam, had found Veerappan to have become "weak" on the basis of his "humble" voice. They advised J.H.Patel against securing his surrender as they were confident of nabbing him.

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