TNLA back in the limelight, thanks to Veerappan

Says Kaliyaperumal, now 76, recalling his days with the PWG and his subsequent expulsion: 8220;Restoring for the Tamils their rights deprived by the artificial construction of an Indian Union was my aim.8221;

When Kaliyaperumal was lodged in Vellore jail, he started the debate on Tamil nationalism. In the early eighties, Tamilarasan took the debate forward, despite a difference of opinion with Kaliyaperumal, and prepared an 8220;alternative document8221; which led to the birth of the TNLA, wedded to Marxism and Tamil nationalism. The document, not available now, marked the shift of ideological stress from class struggle to Tamil nationalism.

Kaliyaperumal8217;s name spelt terror in the 70s. Three persons were killed while manufacturing crude bombs in 1970 in his house, setting off alarm bells in the police force.

In another case, Kaliyaperumal and his son Valluvan were sentenced to death on murder charges. He insists they were framed. They escaped the gallows when the State Government commuted the death sentence in 1973.

In 1985, Kaliyaperumal organised a conference in support of a separate nation for Sri Lankan Tamils in Pennadam. Though Tamilarasan did not attend the conference, he too was expelled from the PWG along with Kaliyaperumal. It was then that Kaliyaperumal formed the Tamil Nadu Marxist-Leninist party. Even today Kaliyaperumal talks with the same fervour about Tamil nationalism and his association with Tamilarasan.

Between 1985 and 1987, the TNLA8217;s leaders were involved in minor bomb blasts and murders of the 8220;enemies of the people8221;. Every time they accomplished a mission, they put up posters explaining their cause. The bomb blast on the Ariyalur railway track which claimed several lives was one of the major incidents that brought out the TNLA8217;s threat potential.

But there was a setback after Tamilarasan and four others were lynched in Ponparappi village by the public when they attempted to rob a bank.

Kaliyaperumal reminisces, sitting on a cot in his humble hut in Pennadam town: 8220;If Tamilarasan had disclosed his identity, people would not have touched him. They mistook him for a criminal. His love for the people can be understood from the fact that he did not use the machine gun he had against those who were attacking him.8221;

The TNLA is believed to have splintered into factions after the death of Tamilarasan and some of them are involved in extortions. It became active again under another leader Lenin, who was also killed when some bombs exploded while he was carrying them on his bicycle.

Now a splinter group led by Maran is believed to be behind the abduction of actor Rajkumar by Veerappan.

Another splinter group, the Tamil Nadu Retrieval Troops TNRT, was trained by the LTTE. Its activities first surfaced in Manalmelkudi in Pudukottai district in 1991. It is said that the police christened it TNRT to differentiate it from TNLA.

Are these groups driven by idealism distanced from reality? Tamilan name changed on request, a TNLA cadre says,8220;We have educated youth in our organisation. We can make bombs and we enjoy the support of the people. In fact, Veerappan8217;s demands have exposed the inability of our politicians to resolve issues concerning people.8221;

Kaliyaperumal seems to support this view. He says,8220;The Indian State has become a cauldron of bickerings, thanks to coalitions, where nobody has any control over anybody. It is time to take on the Indian State and liberate Tamil Nadu.8221;