The Hindu : Shunting trips in Madurai

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Jul 13, 2002

Southern States

Southern States - Tamil Nadu

Shunting trips in Madurai

By R. Krishnamoorthy and S. Vijay Kumar

MADURAI JULY 12. The first MP to be jailed under the Prevention of Terrorism Act, Vaiko, had a taste of what "communication gap'' and "lack of coordination'' meant for the police in the early hours here today.

The police shunted Mr. Vaiko between the Madurai central prison and the Armed Reserve grounds twice before driving him to the Vellore prison. Let alone the jetlag suffered by Mr. Vaiko, who was arrested in Chennai immediately on his return from the U.S. yesterday, and a tiresome onward journey to Madurai, the Government's last-minute decision to shift him to the Vellore prison, on "administrative grounds'', led to confusion among the police and prison officials.

It took a little more than an hour after Mr. Vaiko's arrival at 2.15 a.m. here for remand procedures to be completed. In a surcharged atmosphere, Mr. Vaiko was taken inside the judicial magistrate, Vanitha's quarters, by the police, who were conscious not to let presspersons, waiting for hours in the vicinity, to have a glimpse of the MDMK leader.

When he was taken to the Madurai central prison, the jail authorities produced a fax message from the ADGP (Prisons) directing that Mr. Vaiko be lodged in the Vellore jail. Immediately, the convoy took a U-turn and headed for Vellore. However, even before the vehicles were refuelled on the Armed Reserve grounds, the city police received instructions from the headquarters asking them to take Mr. Vaiko back to the Madurai prison.

The convoy once again sped to the New Jail Road and there the MP was said to have registered his protest. On reaching the prison, he refused to alight from the vehicle and insisted that he be taken to Vellore as was informed earlier.

As repeated persuasion failed, the police were left with no option other than taking him to Vellore, after the vehicles were refuelled. ``There was some communication gap which could have been avoided,'' a police official agreed and said such unscheduled trips also posed a threat to the VIP as the security protocol was given the goby.

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