Tamil Nadu: Woman gives self-immolation drama idea to elderly petitioner, nabbed
TIRUNELVELI: A woman, who earns a living by writing petitions for the public ahead of grievance redressal meetings at the district collectorate, was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly persuading an elderly woman to stage a self-immolation drama in order to force officials to act on her petition.
Palayamkottai police identified the suspect as Thangam. On Monday, Valliammai (70), the petitioner, brought a bottle of kerosene and managed to escape all checkpoints, before gaining entry to the meeting hall. After she poured the kerosene on herself, police personnel at the spot thwarted the attempt and detained her. During the inquiry, it was revealed that Thangam allegedly gave her this idea. Thangam was subsequently placed under arrest and further probe is underway.
"Valliammai hails from Varavikulam. Her daughter had borrowed Rs 4 lakh from a moneylender. As she failed to repay the money on time, the moneylender forced her to register her land in his name. He also warned Valliammai against taking up cultivation on the land. She had submitted many petitions to officials and police in vain. In this situation, she decided to submit a petition to the collector," sources said.
In another case, Town police arrested Saravanan (61), a resident of Gandhi Nagar, for cheating a 71-year-old man of Rs 14 lakh after promising him to register his house in the victim's name. "The complainant, Lilli of Pettai, gave the suspect Rs 14 lakh from his life-savings in 2019-20 believing that the suspect would give him the house," sources said.