CHENNAI: The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls might be carrying with it a fair share of political outcry, but the exercise has come in handy for the Avadi police as they managed to nab a murder suspect, on the run for nearly 22 years.
The case dates back to May 24, 2004, when Mariyam Beevi informed the Ennore police that her relative, Rajendran alias Rafiq, had confessed to killing his friend Tajuddin during a drunken brawl at his house.
After the police found Tajuddin dead with his throat slit, they registered a case, but Rafiq went into hiding, remaining untraceable for more than two decades.
Sources said during a recent review of pending files, Avadi police commissioner K Shankar instructed the officials to prioritise the case. Two special teams under Ennore assistant commissioner Veerakumar shortlisted possible matches from online voter rolls and visited multiple villages posing as SIR data collectors, allowing them to conduct discreet inquiries.
The exercise led them to the suspect’s native Aakkanur village in Cuddalore district.
The police learned Rafiq, who converted to Islam after marrying Rasool Beevi, had been living a transient life across Ariyalur, Jayankondam, Tiruchi, Perambalur, and Bengaluru, selling incense sticks and avoiding mobile phones in a bid to evade detection.
Further intelligence suggested he often stayed near bus stands. Officers camped at these spots and later shifted their search to Bengaluru following a tip-off. After a week of monitoring incense-stick sellers, the police located him at Madiwala Market in Bengaluru. Though he initially gave a fake name, a verification of the Aadhaar card in his bag confirmed his identity.
It was only time that he confessed to the crime, after which, he has been remanded in judicial custody.