It happens only in a country like India. That too in Tamil Nadu. Around second century A.D, Cheran Senguttuvan built a temple for a lady known as Kannagi, known for her chastity. Likewise many temples have been built for ladies throughout India who became ‘satis’ by committing self-immolation on the funeral pyre of their husband. History repeats itself. Despite of the growth of ultra-modern culture and civilization in the twentieth century, people have become even more mystic,fanatical to the extent of building temples to the matinee idols like ‘Khushbu’ and ‘Nagma’, out of their passion and fierce love.
Now people have become even more advanced. Have you heard about forest brigand Veerappan who had been ruling over the forests surrounding Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.? You are right.The very same person who had been committing all sorts of atrocities like poaching, illegal cutting of sandalwood trees and earning crores of rupees as an anti-social element, with the connivance of politicians, killing hundreds of policemen at will, occasionally killing intruders of the forest cruelly, evading the arrest of the police authorities of both Tamil Nadu and Karnataka for over a period of twenty years. Veerappan became even more emboldened to hijack high profile personalities like Kannada Super Star Rajkumar and demanded a huge sum as ransom. Only after getting a huge sum of crores of rupees as ransom from Tamil Nadu Government through an emissary, Rajkumar was freed. However, subsequently, after a few years, through a carefully planned strategy by the Tamil Nadu Police, Veerappan was lured away from the forest and killed, thereby ending the atrocities of the forest brigand once for all. People living in the nearby areas of forests belonging to districts like Dharmapuri and Krishnagiri etc, are even now searching for the treasures in the forests, if any, left over by the deceased forest brigand Veerappan.To such an extent the forest brigand was notorious.
Despite of his notoriety, forest brigand Veerappan is now a folk hero.He will have a statue in Dharmapuri by June.Mrs.Muthulakshmi Veerappan, widow of the forest brigand and V.Gautaman, the director of a teleserial on Veerappan are working with the locals in Dharmapuri and Salem Districts to have statues of Veerappan installed at Moolakkadu., the burial place of the brigand. Now people have accepted the forest brigand as Ellaichamy (a deity which protects borders in folk tales).Apart from Muthulakshmi and Gautaman, the PMK political party is also co-ordinating the activities of installing a statue of forest brigand Veerappan.
It is an irony that people do not discriminate between good and bad elements to eulogies them.
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