The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested the last of the six absconding proclaimed offenders and one additional harbourer in connection with the murder of Ramalingam in Thanjavur district, Tamil Nadu.
The arrested proclaimed offender has been identified as Mohammed Ali Jinnah, a resident of Thanjavur district, who had been declared a proclaimed offender and was carrying a reward of ₹5 lakh for information leading to his arrest. Ramalingam was hacked to death in Thanjavur on 5 February 2019, in a case in which members of the banned Popular Front of India (PFI) have been accused.
According to the NIA, its investigation has revealed the role of Mohammed Ali Jinnah, who previously served as the district president of the PFI in Thanjavur, in conspiring, supervising and coordinating with other accused in the killing. The agency stated that Jinnah was arrested based on specific inputs received from the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) unit of the Tamil Nadu Police.
The NIA also arrested Asmath, who is accused of having harboured the proclaimed offenders in the case for the past several years. The agency said the arrests marked a significant development in the case, as Jinnah was the last remaining absconding proclaimed offender.
The arrests come days after the NIA apprehended two other absconding proclaimed offenders and three additional harbourers in the same case. Those arrests were made five days earlier in connection with the case registered as RC-06/2019/NIA/DLI.
The NIA had taken over the investigation from the Thiruvidaimaruthur police on 7 March 2019 and subsequently filed a chargesheet in August 2019. The agency said it continues to investigate the larger conspiracy behind the murder.
Source: Deccan Chronicle
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