Date:12/12/2002 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2002/12/12/stories/2002121204810100.htm

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Spent bullet casings found

By Our Staff Reporter

BANGALORE Dec. 11. In yet another development relating to the killing of the former Karnataka Minister, H. Nagappa, the Karnataka Special Task Force combing the Chengadi forests and the surrounding areas in the Chamarajanagar district today recovered 27 spent bullet casings of AK-47 rifles and three spent bullets. Nagappa was kidnapped by the forest brigand, Veerappan, and spent 106 days in his custody before he was found dead on Sunday.

The search party, led by the STF Commander, Jyoti Prakash Mirji, however, did not find any trace of another body. The Karnataka Director-General and Inspector-General of Police, T. Madiyal, confirmed that no body, besides that of Nagappa, had been recovered so far.

The packed belongings of Nagappa and provisions bundled in a bed sheet were found within a radius of 300 to 500 yards from the spot where his body was discovered. Bullet marks were found on trees in the area.

Though there were rumours that Veerappan had sent a seventh cassette today, there was no truth in them. Nagappa's body was found in a highly decomposed state amid claims by Veerappan that he was killed in an encounter with the Tamil Nadu STF.

Diary found

Our Mysore Staff Correspondent reports:

Meanwhile, the family members of Nagappa, who visited the spot where the body was discovered, retrieved his personal diary, the contents of which may shed light on the events leading to his death. Family sources said that all the information would be made public within a few days. Contrary to the Government's claim that the STF personnel had recovered 27 empty casings from the spot, it was Nagappa's followers who recovered the cartridges, they said.