WITH the Cauvery dispute keeping it engaged, the S.M. Krishna government in Karnataka appears to have forgotten that forest brigand Veerappan still holds former Minister and Janata Dal leader H. Nagappa hostage. Neither Nagappa who was kidnapped on August 25 from his farmhouse at Kamagere, 90 km from Mysore, nor Veerappan has since been sighted. The only communication between the brigand and the government has been in the form of four audiotaped messages which demanded that the combing operations by the Special Task Forces (STFs) of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu be stopped and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) sympathiser Kolathur Mani be sent to negotiate the hostage's release.
While the Karnataka government has stopped its STF personnel from going after Veerappan it has not been able to send Mani to Veerappan since Mani is in jail in Karnataka. Though Mani did secure bail on October 25 in a case relating to his alleged involvement in the Palar (Tamil Nadu) blasts of 1993, carried out by Veerappan and his gang, he has to remain behind bars in four other cases registered under the Arms Act and the Explosives Act. Legal experts say that Mani, given the gravity of the alleged offences, might find it difficult to secure bail.
For her part, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa has ruled out both negotiations with Veerappan and the stopping of operations of the Tamil Nadu STF. The Tamil Nadu STF has been continuing its operations on the Tamil Nadu side of the border, in a bid to prevent Veerappan who was last known to be on the Karnataka side of the forest, from slipping into Tamil Nadu.
Notwithstanding statements from both Krishna and his Home Minister, Mallikarjun Kharge that everything was being done to get Nagappa released, indications are that the Karnataka government is doing precious little in the matter. But many people, including T. Srinivasulu, Adviser to the Karnataka government on Veerappan affairs and a former Director-General of Police (DGP), feel that not much can be done by the government. Said Srinivasulu: "We have our fingers crossed. We have to hear from Veerappan before anything can be done.''
Not very heartening words to members of Nagappa's family. Nagappa's son-in-law Dr. Kiran Patil said: "It (the kidnapping) has become a non-issue for the Krishna government. They haven't done anything so far to help secure his release. We are now trying to rework our strategy in a bid to put pressure on the government. With the Supreme Court judgments on the Cauvery dispute expected in the next few days and the Deepavali holidays coming after that, we are not optimistic at all."
The family is worried over the safety and health of Nagappa, a diabetic. On October 31, some of his family members and a few Janata Dal leaders met Karnataka Governor T.N. Chaturvedi and urged him "to use his good offices to ask the Karnataka government to speed up the process of getting Nagappa released''. Nagappa's family and also his friends and followers have thus far met religious and political leaders from Karnataka, gone on a hunger strike, sent messages via All India Radio (AIR) and even ventured into the forest in a bid to pressure the government to act and the brigand to send a message or release his hostage. Defence Minister George Fernandes has promised the Nagappa family and the Karnataka government that he would do all he can through his personal "contacts'' to help end the abduction crisis. But all to no avail.
INITIALLY the Karnataka government had, unlike during past abductions by Veerappan, shown a keenness to nab the bandit. But the intense search operations it launched for the gang did not pay off. The closest its STF came to sighting Veerappan was when they spotted a place where the gang had camped on September 6 at Kalmatturpatti (near Hoogyam on the Karnataka-Tamil Nadu border), falling under the Ramapuram police station. But all that they saw was the remnants of a campfire.
The operation failed either because the STF could not match, as has been the case for over a decade, Veerappan's speed and cunning, or because the police informant had alerted (presumably through his friends) the gang of the impending police action. STF sources pointed out that Veerappan could have left his hideout at Kalmatturpatti (which is close to the Veerappan-friendly villages of Nallur, Penda and Meeniyam and north of his haunt in the Bargur forests) at least 10-12 hours before his pursuers arrived. The STF's failure has left the Karnataka government with few options but to negotiate.
But the government is still looking for "emissaries with credibility'', those who are acceptable to Veerappan, to negotiate with the brigand. For his part, Veerappan has steadfastly indicated that he is prepared to negotiate only through Mani and/or the Tamilar Desiya Iyakkam leader P. Nedumaran (who is in jail in Tamil Nadu under the Prevention of Terrorism Act, or POTA) or Ponnachi Mahadevaswamy, a local Janata Dal(U) leader (provided he is accompanied by Mani). Krishna, who had ruled out enlarging Mani to allow him to go into the forests, may now have to relent; the Public Prosecutor may have to be directed not to oppose Mani's bail plea.
Mahadevaswamy, who initially shied away, did agree to negotiate with Veerappan, even alone. A message to this effect was broadcast on AIR, but Veerappan is yet to respond.
Meanwhile, former Karnataka Deputy Superintendent of Police Abdul Kareem, father of Sub-Inspector of Police Shakeel Ahmed (who was killed by Veerappan and his gang in 1993) has urged the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister to direct the State's DGP to book Mani under POTA. Kareem, who in 2000 approached the Supreme Court and thwarted the release of TADA detenus (whose release was demanded by Veerappan after he abducted Kannada actor Rajkumar) has filed a public interest petition in the Supreme Court against the failure of the Special Public Prosecutor to file objections to Mani's bail plea in the TADA court. He has made a plea to the court to prevent Mani's release on bail.
Mani's arrest was masterminded by former Karnataka STF Commander, Inspector-General of Police Kempaiah. The State government had been opposing his bail plea, arguing that his enlargement would strengthen Veerappan's position.
Post-August 25, the government had sought Mani's help to record an audio message (to be broadcast over AIR) requesting Veerappan to free his captive. Mani obliged, recording the message from his cell in the Bellary jail.
The Krishna government now seems unsure about how to deal with Mani whether to ignore Veerappan's demand for Mani (and face the Nagappa family's wrath) or make a somersault from its earlier position and not oppose Mani's bail plea.
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