The half burned body of KPK Jeyakumar Dhanasingh, the Tirunelveli East district president of the Congress party, was found on Saturday at his farm in Karaichuthupudur near Thisayanvilai, with police suspecting foul play in his death.
Jeyakumar, 60, had been reported missing since Thursday night, prompting his son, Karuthaiah Jaffrin, to file a missing person complaint on Friday. Later, Jeyakumar’s half burned body was found at his farm.
According to sources close to the investigation, Jeyakumar’s body was found with his hands and legs tied with electric cables, indicating possible homicide. Police have launched an investigation into the matter, exploring multiple angles including potential land deals involving Jeyakumar.
District SP N Silambarasan has formed five special teams to investigate Jeyakumar’s death. The police are awaiting the postmortem report.
“We are probing all possible angles in this case,” he told a top police source. “Circumstances suggest that it was murder, and we are leaving no stone unturned to unravel the mystery,” the police source said.
Jeyakumar’s family also alleged foul play citing a complaint he filed with the Superintendent of Police on April 30. In the complaint, Jeyakumar had alleged that he had been receiving death threats from several individuals following a financial dispute. He had also raised concerns about suspicious activities around his residence at night.
The Congress described Jeyakumar Dhanasingh as a “dedicated and responsible leader.” Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) president K Selvaperunthagai, in his condolence message, said the party leaders were shattered at the news.
The opposition lashed out at the ruling DMK over the matter.
AIADMK general secretary and Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Edappadi K Palaniswami urged Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin to take swift action in arresting those responsible for Jeyakumar’s death. Palaniswami also condemned the “deterioration of the law and order situation in the state”, and demanded decisive measures to prevent similar incidents in the future.
The BJP and PMK also questioned the ruling DMK over the law and order situation, citing the Congress leader’s death.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
First uploaded on: 05-05-2024 at 07:00 IST
