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E-mail from readers the world over

'Perhaps we should float an international tender for arresting Veerappan!'

Date: Mon, 24 Sep 2000, 09:01:18EST -0700
Subject: Still At Large

Veerappan has the blessings of all the politicians in Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. The IPS officers who are honest have been put to inaction by the politicians who benefit from all the ivory and sandal wood trade. Nobody can kill so many police personnel and get away with it unless he has political support.

Chandru Narayan

Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2000, 00:40:39EST +0400
Subject: Still At Large

Why don't you people try to send a bus full of CID or police officers armed with ammunition to the same area where Veerappan kidnapped the tourists? He could be easily caught.

Abishek

Date: Wed, 20 Sep 2000, 16:24:54EST -0700
Subject: Still At Large

Very interesting. I look forward to the next part of the series.

Rajaa V

Date: Wed, 20 Sep 2000, 17:11:31EST -0700
Subject: Still at Large

That was a superb article! I will keep visiting your site for articles like this.

Sid Ramachandran

Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2000, 07:27:09EST +0530
Subject: Still At Large

I feel ashamed to call myself an Indian. This is the millionth time that our internal squabbles have made a bandit so powerful that even two state chief ministers appear like putty in front of him.

Surely, as has been said, there is political will fuelling the motives of the brigand who has become so wild that the only alternative left now is to eliminate him.

Krishnan Natarajan

Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2000, 14:16:51EST
Subject: Still At Large

It is indeed a shame that no police force in India is able to track down a criminal hiding in the forest when a newspaper reporter is able to reach him in the forests within a day. Perhaps we should float an international tender for arresting Veerappan as our politicians seem to have no clues as to how the case has to be dealt with and have done nothing for the past 15 years. What is the guarantee they would be able to hold him if they arrest him? He might simply pay his way out of prison!

Ahmed Ali

Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2000, 09:52:24EST -0500
Subject: Still At Large

An interesting article though I do feel that even this piece is a cop out. Why is there no mention of who the politicians and top bureaucrats/administrators are who have benefited from supporting Veerappan? Does Mr Menon have any of the names of those involved? If he does, he should pass them on the home ministry.

Ramesh Rao

Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2000, 10:59:52EST -0400
Subject: Still At Large

This one of the best articles I have read in a long time. Thank you for creating a new revolution in the Indian media.

A government source in Tamil Nadu had said, "Veerappan cannot exist without a pipeline to sustain him. If you have powerful politicians and bureaucrats backing him, he can never be caught. Many people have used Veerappan all these years to make money, both in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu."

This statement is 100 per cent correct. Please continue your work on this series.

Ugandar

Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2000, 11:21:31EST -0400
Subject: Still At Large

While I appreciate the effort in publishing news about Veerappan, I don't understand why nobody writes about what happened to all the sandalwood he smuggled and to the elephants he killed. I keep seeing so many reports saying that he smuggled Rs 10 million worth of sandalwood, killed 2,000 or so elephants etc. But there should be someone or another gang perhaps who buy these stuff from him and thereby make money. In the article, I read that nothing is free in the Veerapan country and he pays for everything. Where does he get money from? Why is no journalist is trying to find that source and expose him/them?

As long as everyone continues to write only about Veerappan, I don't think we can ever capture him. We will continue to make him a hero and villagers and some groups of Tamils will continue to worship him.

I would rather expect Rediff to write on the other side to the story -- Veerappan's customers or clients -- instead of writing about him.

K S Karthikeyan

Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2000, 22:39:02EST +0530
Subject: Still At Large

The Karnataka and Tamil Nadu governments are making a fool of the general public. If they want to nab Veerappan, all they have to do is to block all the roads leading out of the forests through which Veerappan must be smuggling out all the sandalwood.

It is unfortunate that we are living in a country where even the prime minister has admitted that 90 per cent of the amount sent as relief for deserving areas or people does not reach them. Perhaps only if you are a Veerappan or a Phoolan Devi can you get things done in this country!

Akhil Bansal

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