Tamil Nadu factory worker’s death: DMK MP accused for murder

Chennai : The alleged murder of a factory labour for stealing few kilograms of cashewnuts has landed a DMK MP in trouble. The MP and five of his aides are now under arrest. The MP, TRVS Ramesh, who surrendered on Monday before a judicial magistrate court, is likely to be questioned by the state CB-CID on Wednesday.

Ramesh and the others are accused of allegedly killing K Govindarasu, a 60-year-old daily-wage labourer working in the cashew unit owned by the MP in Panruti, near Cuddalore, on September 20.

After the case was transferred from the local police to the CB-CID, five employees of Ramesh’s cashew unit, the MP’s personal assistant Natarajan, manager Kandavel, and senior employees M Allah Pitchai, K Vinoth and Sundararajan were arrested on Saturday. Ramesh, who had gone into hiding, surrendered on Monday, after which he was remanded in two-day judicial custody.

Cuddalore DMK MP TRVS Ramesh surrenders before a court in Panruti. He was one among the six accused by the CB-CID in the murder of a 55-year-old worker employed in the MP’s cashewnut processing unit. @IndianExpress

— Janardhan Koushik (@koushiktweets) October 11, 2021

Official sources said that Ramesh first tortured the old man Govindarasu for stealing cashewnuts from the processing unit. “He was caught by the security guards with the cashewnuts while he was leaving for home. But there is no complaint or evidence of theft against Govindarasu at the local police station,” said an official.

According to a senior officer the presence of Ramesh during torture and murder is yet to be confirmed. “We will comment on that after the detailed probe and questioning of the MP, which is likely on Wednesday,” said the officer, adding, “It was the victim’s son, who is also a daily-wage labourer in Chennai, who filed the complaint naming Ramesh and his aides. The complainant was in Chennai when he received news of his father’s death. The initial information was that his father consumed poison, but there were injuries on the body and the son filed a complaint of unnatural death. Ramesh’s name was specifically mentioned in the complaint.”

After Ramesh was remanded in judicial custody, his counsel had sought a first-class prison cell for the MP at the Cuddalore central prison.

In a statement issued by Ramesh before surrendering, he had said that he was pained to witness the “political propaganda run by the Opposition” against the DMK over the death of the factory worker.

The Opposition Pattali Makkal Katchi had on Saturday blamed the state police for delaying the arrest of the MP.