Absconding caste-outfit leader accused of Dalit’s murder appears on TV to say he will evade arrest

He also attempts to malign the character of Gokulraj, the Dalit youngster he is accused of murdering.
Absconding caste-outfit leader accused of Dalit’s murder appears on TV to say he will evade arrest
Absconding caste-outfit leader accused of Dalit’s murder appears on TV to say he will evade arrest
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In what could add further pressure on the Tamil Nadu police department and the Jayalalithaa government in investigation of Dalit youth Gokulraj’s murder and consequent death of DSP Vishnupriya, the main accused in the murder case, President of the caste-outfit Dheeran Chinnamalai Peravai, Yuvaraj, has appeared on popular Tamil news channel Puthiya Thalaimurai and said that the case against him is false and he does not have the need to get arrested if the police are acting ‘unlawfully’.

In the edited interview which was aired on Sunday morning, he says that he is not worried about the Gokulraj case investigations as he had no role in it. He has also placed the request for a public debate in front of the media. He says that he will get the directions from the court if the police agree to have an open debate on the case where he will prove that he is not guilty of murdering Gokulraj, and that if he is proven guilty, he will accept any punishment then and there. But if the police are found to be wrong, then the officers who he accused of impropriety will have to resign and leave the force. He says that if the police give the assurance that this is acceptable, he will surface without wasting the state’s resources.

He accuses the police of having political intentions in ‘targeting’ him in the Gokulraj murder case, and says their real motive is not justice for Gokulraj. It is laughable to say he has political support, says Yuvaraj.

He says he is absconding in self-defense and has no reason to surrender as the police are acting unlawfully. “If I had been arrested earlier, I could have even been killed by the police,” he says.

In what seems to be an attempt to malign the character of Dalit youth Gokulraj, who was allegedly murdered for being friendly with a girl from a higher caste, he says that Gokulraj was involved with several girls, and that the police are not investigating that angle.

Many believe that this has come as an embarrassment for the Tamil Nadu government.

“It is amazing that a 3-4 year old TV channel can get to him but the Tamil Nadu police cannot trace him when he using his mobile phone and is in touch with his people through WhatsApp,” says Lakshmanan C, Associate Professor at Madras Institute of Development Studies. “The TN government should take steps towards justice in Gokulraj case. What is the status in the case? We have to know. And if Gokulraj case is solved, then automatically there will be more clarity in the Vishnupriya case also,” he says. DSP Vishnupriya, the investigating officer in the case, allegedly committed suicide on September 18, and friends and families have alleged her death could have links to the Gokulraj murder case.

“An open interview like this demoralizes the police force and reduces the trust and confidence of the people in the police. So however quick the police can arrest him, it is better for the force and the confidence of the people on the government,” says Ravikumar, General Secretary of Dalit-based party VCK.

Choosing not to respond to the criticism, Mahesh Kumar Aggarwal, IG, TN CB-CID says, "The accused can say what he wants to defend himself, it does not affect our investigation. I need not respond to any criticism, our actions will respond."

You can watch Yuvaraj’s entire interview here.

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