TLA bid to be back with a bang

In the past too, the TLA had tried to target a building or two every year on or before August 15 to show their displeasure over the Indian Independence celebrations. This time, they targeted the State Election Commission office and Russian Cultural Centre, with an intention to get nationwide publicity.

What has surprised the police is the TLA hitting back at a time when they thought that the group was cornered after the arrest of Ilavarasan at Salem recently.

Though police have not identified which group of TLA had committed the act, a theory doing the rounds is that it could be the handiwork of Ponpirappi Rajedran, who was arrested at Gummudipoondi with a huge cache of arms a few months ago.

The birth of TLA dates back to late 70s when Kaliaperumal started Tamil Nadu CP(ML) with a leaning towards Maoism. It was during that time that Tamilarasan, an engineering graduate and a rebel by nature, joined the gang. But his ambition to be part of Kaliaperumal’s group was short-lived.

Following ideological differences with the latter, Tamilarasan started TLA.Their main demand was to liberate Tamil Nadu from India and make it free. They believed that Tamils constituted a separate race.

They believed that India, even after Independence, retained British ideology and were keen on liberating Tamil Nadu. They were also not impressed by Mahatma Gandhi’s ideals and believed that he was one of the reasons for the present state of affairs in the country.

Tamilarasan was very familiar with the South Arcot district and always managed to give the slip to police even while the crimes committed by the group went on the rise. The records state that he had once escaped from the Tiruchi prison.

As most of his cadres belonged to the Vannia caste (a backward community) he had the local support which added to their advantage. The group got nationwide importance only after blasting the Rockfort Express in March 15, 1989 in which over 50 persons were killed.

As the villagers by and large did not have much knowledge of the happenings in the world, the group capitalised on the weakness and carried on a virulent propaganda about their struggle and against the establishment. This support helped them a lot in identifying the rich people. Several small-time businessmen also helped them with money to enable them to continue. But they did not believe in abduction and extortion.

The groups’ support base enabled its strike force to escape from the scene after attempting to blast a bridge over Coleroon river at Tiruvaiyaru in 1986, prior to former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s visit to the area.

But fate sealed the growth of the group when Tamilarasan was lynched to death by a crowd along with four of his associates, when they were caught after attempting to loot the Ponpirappi branch of State Bank of India. Soon after, another main comrade Lenin was killed in an explosion, when the explosives which he was carrying in a cycle exploded near Muthandikuppam.

Ponpirappi Rajendran and Sundaram left the organisation and formed their own groups under the TLA banner. Sundaram believed in treading a slow and a steady path while Ponpirappi Rajendran preferred all-out aggression.

Later, two other groups were formed, one led by Koovagam Ramasamy and the other by Ilavarsan.