Salem: Ten years after the killing of sandalwood smuggler, Veerappan, the legendary brigand’s grave at Moolakadu hamlet, near Mettur dam, still draws curious crowds.
On his 10th death anniversary on Thursday, scores of people paid floral homage to the brigand at a vacant land where he was buried.
The Salem police had denied permission for Veerappan’s wife Muthulakshmi to organise free distribution of food to the poor on her slain husband’s death anniversary.
However, the Madras high court gave the nod for Muthulakshmi to do poor feeding. Muthulakshmi said the government should grant permission for building a memorial at the site where her husband has been buried.
Talking to the media, she said she would move the court if the government continued to refuse permission for building the memorial.
Cadres of Naam Tamizhar Katchi, Tamizhar Vaazhvurimai Katchi and Bengaluru Self-Respecting Tamils Federation also came to Moolakadu to pay floral tributes.
After over two decades of hunt, the brigand, who had struck terror in the forests of western Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, was gunned down by the special task force of Tamil Nadu on October 18, 2004.
However, his wife Muthulakshmi insists that he was poisoned to death.
