Thiruvananthapuram, Nov 8: Kochaniyan alias Manikandan, kingpin behind the supply of hooch mixed with killer methanol, which claimed 35 lives in Kerala recently surrendered before the first class judicial magistrate court at Paravoor in Kollam district.According to police here, Kochaniyan, who reached the court early in the morning took refuge inside the magistrate's chamber when he saw the police. But the court staff did not allow him to stay in the chamber and asked him to vacate the premises immediately.When he was being evicted by the police and court staff, the magistrate came out of the chamber and asked the police to produce him in the court, police said.Kochaniyan is a liquor dealer operating from Attingal and Chirayinkil. His brother Manichean, a liquor contractor is the prime accused in the hooch tragedy.The tragedy first struck Kalluvathuckal on October 21 and spread to Pallickal, Pattazhi and Pallipuram.Later, Judge Bindu Kumari remanded Kochaniyan to judicial custody till November 22.He was taken to Kollam sub-jail with tight police security.Meanwhile, the Kerala Government has decided to make a fresh request to the Chief Justice of the Kerala High Court for the services of a sitting high court judge to probe the recent liquor tragedy.The Cabinet, which met today, decided to depute Law Minister E Chandrasekharan Nair to personally meet Chief Justice K K Usha and renew the plea, Chief Minister E K Nayanar said during his briefing.Justice Usha had expressed inability in making available a sitting judge in view of shortage of judges and heavy workload in the High Court.Nair would apprise Justice Usha of the demand by leaders of political parties at last week's all-party meeting on having the liquor tragedy probed by a sitting judge.Nair would meet the Chief Justice either tomorrow or the day after.Meanwhile, the government had asked the Director General of Police to set up a special team to investigate the inter-state illicit spirit smuggling.The team would investigate all major and minor illicit spirit cases reported from different parts of the state in order to bust all links in the spirit trade, the Chief Minister said.The team to be headed by southern range I G Rajan Madhekar would be asked to trace the sources of smuggled spirit and the people involved.The Chief Minister took exception to senior Congress leader Karunakaran's charge that the government was going slow on the investigations in the hooch tragedy.Three persons wanted in connection with the Kalluvathukkal hooch tragedy including the main suspect Hairunneesa had been arrested. Five persons had been arrested in connection with the Kottrakkara hooch tragedy and two in connection with the Pallipuram liilict liquor incident, he said.Nayanar said Karunakaran's claim that the government headed by him had contained the Vaypeen liquor tragedy in 1982 within 48 hours " is far from true." The government then took more that two months to arrest the main accused in that case, Nayanar held." Karunakaran is spreading falsehood to mislead the people", he added.
