TIRUNELVELI: In a dramatic series of events, five Tamil Nadu police personnel, who were tracking a notorious fugitive, got stranded atop a 1,000-ft hillock in the Kadayam region of Tenkasi on Thursday night. The team, two head constables in their 40s and three armed reserve personnel in their 30s, was rescued after a 10-hour operation that ended on Friday morning.
The accused, Balamurugan (30), a history-sheeter from Kadayam, is wanted in over 80 cases, including murder, robbery and dacoity, registered in TN and Kerala. Police sources said the TN police had sought permission from the Kerala police to produce him at the Aruppukkottai court for the crimes registered in the state. While being escorted back to the Thrissur prison a month ago, he allegedly assaulted three TN personnel and escaped. He has evaded the police of both states ever since.
On Thursday, police received a tip that Balamurugan had returned to Kadayam and was meeting his wife, Josvina, as part of a plan for them to escape together. The couple moved towards a hillock along the Kadayam-Ramanathi dam stretch, climbing to a height of nearly 1,000 ft.
Stranded cops communicated with their team using phone & walkie-talkie, say officials
Learning of this, Kadayam police alerted senior officers and over 50 personnel surrounded the hill. Heavy rain and fading light hampered the search, but five personnel attempted to climb a steep and slippery rock face. However, they got stuck midway and the manhunt had to be temporarily suspended.
A 30-member fire and rescue team from Alangulam, Tenkasi, Surandai and Kadaiyanallur was deployed to rescue them. Using high-powered lights, the team, supervised by Tenkasi SP S Aravind and Alangulam DSP Gladston Jose, rescued three personnel by 3 am and the other two by 6.30 am on Friday, despite the intermittent drizzle. Officials said the stranded officers communicated with their team using a phone and walkie-talkie.
“Two of them had to stand on the same slippery rock for nearly six hours. They even found a deer skeleton on the hillock. The five personnel risked their lives to apprehend a highly dangerous fugitive,” said an official.
Santosh Hadimani, DIG, Tirunelveli Range, lauded their bravery. Meanwhile, police used drones to locate Balamurugan, who was last seen around 4 pm on Thursday with his wife. More than 50 personnel continued to comb the area, which remains under police control, though rains slowed the search.