Family receives murdered grocer’s body in Tirunelveli
The Hindu
TIRUNELVELI
The family of a grocer, who was murdered by an armed gang belonging to another caste, agreed to accept the body after holding talks with Speaker M. Appavu on Tuesday.
There was an enmity between the administrators of Sudalai Temple in Seevalaperi and another intermediate caste of the village. The temple priest Durai alias Chidambaram was murdered in April last year while his brother-in-law suffered injuries.
When grocer Mayandi motivated a witness of this murder to record his deposition without fear, the accused in the murder of Durai, after being enlarged on bail, murdered Mayandi, the police said. So, the family of Mayandi refused to accept the body even after they held talks with Collector V. Vishnu on Monday. When members of Yadhava outfits tried to assemble near Veeran Azhagumuthu Kone statue in Palayamkottai before taking out a procession towards the Collectorate, the police thwarted the attempt. After six of them, who participated in the protest, were picked up by the police, the procession attempt got dissipated.
Meanwhile, Mr. Appavu came to the Circuit House to hold talks with the family and representatives of Yadhava outfits. He assured them that he would take up this issue with the government. They accepted the assurance and the Speaker gave Rs. 5 lakh from his personal funds to the family of Mayandi. When Mr. Appavu requested the family to receive the body, they promised to receive the body on Wednesday.
Since sale of pooja materials to the devotees coming to Sudalai Temple from the shops set up on the temple land without permission from the temple administrators and taking the temple shops on rent through coercion by another intermediate caste had led to the murder of Durai, revenue officials started surveying the temple land on Tuesday based on the documents available. Though the survey was stalled for a while by a group, the officials went ahead with the help of the police.
“Once the survey is completed, the temple and its land surrounding the shrine will be fenced so that the illegal setting up of the shop will be averted,” said a revenue official.
In 2021, five women from Mayithara, four of them MGNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act) workers, found a common ground in their desire to create a sustainable livelihood by growing vegetables. Rajamma M., Mary Varkey, Valsala L., Elisho S., and Praseeda Sumesh, aged between 70 and 39, pooled their savings, rented a piece of land and began their collective vegetable farming journey under the Deepam Krishi group.