NAGERCOIL: WHILE instances of contractors leaving public works in limbo may not particularly come as a shocker to many, the villagers of Palugal town panchayat in Kanniyakumari district decided to express their dismay over a shoddy road project by declaring that the contractor concerned was dead, despite him being very much alive and well. However, their amusing yet foolhardy tactic landed them in trouble as the police booked 12 of them for pasting wall posters condoling the contractor’s ‘death’.
K Manikandan, a resident of Kannumaamoodu in Kanniyakumari district, had taken up a contract for laying a 745-meter stretch between Ramavarmanchirai and Soorankuzhi at an estimated outlay of `16 lakh. The road-laying work had been beset by a dispute between the contractor and the residents of Palugal town panchayat, who were unhappy over the piling up of stone metal on the already narrow stretch, which had turned the route into a nightmare for motorists.
Against this backdrop, Manikandan’s relatives came in for a rude shock on Saturday when they spotted the wall posters condoling his demise. It was only after they tried contacting him that they came to know he was still alive.
Speaking to Express, Manikandan sought to downplay the entire episode, stating that it was nothing more than a continuation of a long-drawn dispute between him and some villagers over the road work.
It may be noted that Manikandan had been named as an accused in a sex scandal involving a 14-year-old that rocked Paravur back in 2010.