The Hindu : `He shook our hands, but spoke little'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Aug 27, 2002

Southern States

Southern States - Tamil Nadu

`He shook our hands, but spoke little'

By Sharath S. Srivatsa

The bus which was set ablaze by a mob at Kamagere near Kollegal in Chamarajanagar District on Sunday in protest against the abduction of the former Minister, Nagappa, 0by Veerappan.

Kollegal (C'nagar Dt.) AUG. 26. What was supposed to be just another journey back home after a day's toil turned out to be an unforgettable experience for these weary passengers on a private bus plying between Kollegal and Ramapura late on Sunday night.

A fugitive on the run for the past 17 years, the notorious poacher, Veerappan, appeared before the 50-odd passengers on the bus, much to their bewilderment. The bus had been diverted from its normal route after a mob had set a Tamil Nadu State Transport bus on fire following the abduction of their leader and former Minister, H. Nagappa, from Kamagere by Veerappan. One of the last few buses to Ramapura, a remote hamlet on the Karnataka-Tamil Nadu border, it was stopped near Chennalinganahalli, around 20 km. from Kollegal, by a few armed men around 12.30 a.m. Unaware of the development in the nearby Kamagere village, the driver, who mistook the two men camouflaged in police fatigues for Special Task Force (STF) personnel, stopped the bus. Narrating the sequence of events to The Hindu, Basavaraju, Headmaster of Chennalinganahalli Primary School, who was the first to identify the forest brigand, said that soon after the bus was stopped, two armed men asked the passengers to alight. They were directed not to create trouble. Once the passengers alighted, Veerappan and three others who were hiding in a field with Mr. Nagappa emerged.

The brigand came near the bus after the passengers were taken a little away from it. A thrilled Basavaraju said: "The brigand spoke very little, and only said that we would not be harmed, and the bus would be sent back once his job was completed." .

While around 20 women passengers were petrified watching the unfolding drama, the men rushed to shake hands with Veerappan, whose notorious exploits in the area have made him popular. Mr. Basavaraju said the brigand shook hands with all of them even as he remained vigilant. Asked if he was Veerappan, the brigand nodded his head and answered in Tamil. Interestingly, the poacher stopped the bus very close to the Gundal Reservoir where a posse of STF personnel is stationed for combing operations. Meanwhile, the bus driver, whose identity has not been revealed, was forced to drive the vehicle with his "guests". It is learnt that he was directed to take them to some remote place on the Karnataka-Tamil Nadu border.

On sighting a jeep half a km. from Chennalinganahalli, the gang directed the driver to stop the bus and disappeared into the forests. Eyewitnesses said the jeep belonged to the STF, the personnel of which did not evince interest in chasing the gangeven after the passengers alerted them.

What was intriguing to most people in the nearby villages was the manner in which the gang waylaid the bus on the highway and made away with its hostage into the thick jungles where the brigand calls the shots.

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