Tamil Nadu police’s ‘encounter specialist’ suspended a day ahead of retirement; order revoked hours later

CHENNAI: Hours after suspending ‘encounter specialist’ S Velladurai, who was involved in several encounter killings – most famous of them being the gunning down of forest brigand Veerappan in 2004 – the Tamil Nadu government revoked the order and allowed him to retire.

However, according to the revised order, Rs 5 lakh will be withheld from Velladurai's death-cum-retirement gratuity based on the recommendations of State Human Rights Commission.

In his last posting, he was serving as Additional Superintendent of Police, District Crime Records Bureau, Tiruvannamalai.

Velladurai played a key role in several encounter killings over the years in which history-sheeters were eliminated by the State police. The most popular of them was the killing of Veerappan by the special task force, which he was part of.

In the suspension order, issued a day before his retirement, the Home Department cited a pending inquiry into a custodial death case against the officer.

The case is about the custodian death of a suspect, Ramar alias Kokki Kumar, in 2013 when Velladurai was a DSP in Sivaganga district.

Kumar had allegedly robbed Rs 500 from a man and when a police team went to apprehend him, he allegedly fell into a pit. The police claimed he succumbed to the injuries that he sustained in the fall.

However, there were several suspicions and allegations, as Kumar was a close friend of M Prabhu and Bharathi, who were accused in the murder of sub-inspector Alwin Sudhan. Both of them were gunned down by police on November 30, 2012.

Sub-inspector Alwin Sudhan was killed in the attack on policemen during Maruthupandiar Jayanthi on October 27, 2012.