Two men from R. Ponnapuram near Pollachi have accused the police, mainly officials from the ‘Q’ Branch, of forcing them to testify against alleged Maoist Roopesh before the Coimbatore District Court.
They also alleged that the police threatened them of getting their driving licence suspended and implicating them in ganja and illicit liquor cases.
M. Selvaraj, 39, and T. Sakthi, both relatives and residents of Arivoli Nagar at R. Ponnapuram, have alleged that they were falsely implicated as witnesses in a case against Roopesh registered by the Pollachi taluk police in 2016, which is handled by ‘Q’ Branch. The case relates to alleged procuring of a SIM card by Roopesh using identification documents of C. Panchalingam, a resident of R. Ponnapuram, before his arrest near Karumathampatti in Coimbatore in May 2015.
Mr. Selvaraj and Mr. Sakthi received summons from the district court that instructed them to appear to give evidence in the case on June 26.
“At the public prosecutor’s office, we were asked to testify against Roopesh, whom we have not seen or heard of. When refused, the police threatened to implicate us in other cases. How do we testify against an unknown person? If the police continue to harass us, tarnish our names and deprive us of our livelihood, there is no option left but to end lives”, said Mr. Selvaraj, a driver by occupation, to The Hindu.
Mr. Selvaraj’s brother’s son P. Nagaraj ended his life on July 1, 2016. He and Mr. Sakthi had visited the Pollachi taluk station with regard to the incident.
“The police got our signatures on a blank sheet of paper. We were told it was for the formalities to release the body of Nagaraj. The police misused the signatures and used it for a fake statement that we had seen Roopesh in 2014 in our village,” Mr. Selvaraj alleged. The statement said that Roopesh also spoke to them about Maoist principles and asked them to join the organisation.
As the duo refused to testify against Roopesh, they were not produced before the court for the examination of witnesses.
Led by Ashok Kumar, Coimbatore south district president of Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), Mr. Selvaraj and Mr. Sakthi, submitted a petition before the Pollachi sub-collector on June 28, along with signatures of more than 80 people, against the alleged police atrocity.
“Petitions have also been given to the Chief Minister’s cell, State Human Rights Commission, State SC/ST Commission, Coimbatore District Collector and VCK chief,” said Mr. Kumar.
Roopesh’s wife P.A. Shyna alleged that this was a covert strategy to trap the Maoist political prisoner in false cases and keep him in jail for a long time.
“This incident questions the credibility of witness statements in the ongoing cases against political prisoners. It is shocking that the public prosecutor, a respected officer of the court, who is supposed to help the court to prove the truth and not the lawyer of the police, has acted in such a way as to tarnish the dignity of that position,” she alleged.
She wanted the Tamil Nadu government to take immediate action against the policemen who forced the two workers to give false statements and provide protection to the workers.
A total of 43 cases were registered against Roopesh after he was arrested along with his wife P.A. Shyna, Anoop Mathew, Veeramani and Kannan in 2015. He was acquitted in one case, discharged in five cases and partially discharged in one case. Out of these, 23 cases are in Kerala, one in Karnataka and remaining in Tamil Nadu. Around 15 cases in Tamil Nadu are related to procuring SIM cards using the documents of others for alleged anti-national activities.
(Assistance for overcoming suicidal thoughts is available on the State’s health helpline 104, Tele-MANAS 14416. and Sneha’s suicide prevention helpline 044-24640050).
Published - July 01, 2024 09:06 pm IST
