The Villupuram police shot down an alleged notorious ‘rowdy,’ who was an accused in several murder, kidnapping and land grabbing cases, in Chennai on Tuesday night.
According to reports, 39-year-old Manikandan lived in an apartment, allegedly owned by his friend, in a posh locality in Korattur with his wife and children. On Tuesday evening, police from Villupuram reached Golden Oak apartment in Korattur on a tip off that Manikandan was planning to fly abroad with his family. When the team of policemen reached Korattur apartment, Manikandan’s wife and kids were not there. As the police tried to arrest him, Manikandan allegedly took out a sharp weapon and attacked one of the sub-inspectors, Prabhu, and tried to escape.
Sub-inspector Prakash then fired two rounds of bullets which hit his leg and chest, killing him. As he collapsed, the police rushed him to Kilpauk Medical College and Hospital. However, he was declared dead on arrival by the doctors there. Sub-inspector Prabhu was also taken to the Kilpauk Medical College Hospital and administered eight stitches.
Manikandan had at least 28 cases against him, including murder and attempt to murder charges. The encounter on Tuesday night was in connection with the murder of businessman ‘Reliance’ Babu in 2018. Manikandan had allegedly been active since the early 2000s and was mainly involved in extortion. He allegedly used to threaten foreigners who bought land in and around Auroville. He then moved on to more serious crimes and allegedly murdered a foreign couple a few years ago for their property. He and his gang were also allegedly involved in the murder of a political functionary a few years ago.
Even in the case of ‘Reliance’ Babu, Manikandan had reportedly demanded Rs 20 lakh from him. When Babu refused, he threw country bombs at him before allegedly hacking him to death. His clashes with his rival, Rajkumar, another notorious criminal in Villupuram, resulted in at least 20 murders, as per reports.
Source: The News Minute