Family members of K.R. Subramaniam, a civil works contractor, who was found dead at his farm house here on May 8 after coming under the scanner of the Income Tax Department, on Thursday released what they claimed to be a four-page letter posted by him blaming “business rivals” for his death.
Last month, Income Tax Department officials had conducted searches at Subramaniam’s house along with the premises of Health Minister C. Vijaya Baskar, following evidence of large scale bribing of voters of Dr. Radhakrishnan Nagar Assembly constituency.
In the “letter” dated May 6, which family members and police claim was sent by registered post, Subramaniam has said that he had no links with the Minister. The letter said the brother-in-law of the founder of a company, with which he was associated in the past, had spread false information about his alleged links with the Minister on account of business rivalry.
Additional Deputy Superintendent of Police (Prohibition Enforcement Wing) S. Senthil, the investigation officer in the case, said Subramaniam had written 13 letters addressed to various persons on May 6 and asked his supervisor Vadivel to send them by registered post. The same day, Vadivel sent the letters from the head post office in Namakkal.
One letter was received by his family members in Teachers’ Colony in the town after his death. On Thursday when the existence of the letter was leaked, a group of journalists went to Subramaniam’s house asking to see the letter following which photocopies were given by inmates at the house.
Mr. Senthil said letters sent to three addressees have been found. Subramaniam had addressed the letters to the Chief Minister, the Health Minister, one to his family, five to his friends and five to senior police officers. The officer said that during inquiries made with Subramaniam’s servants and others some had said that they saw him writing something for over an hour on May 6.
Police claimed that the family members had confirmed that the handwriting in the letter was that of Subramaniam. The letter was sent to handwriting analysis to a lab in Chennai.
In the photocopies of the letter given to journalists, the contractor had also claimed that he was forced to take the decision to end his life due to verbal abuse by an Income Tax officer in the rank of Deputy Director in Chennai.
The letter, wherein Subramaniam’s foray into engineering construction business in 1992 has been traced, said that after he branched out on his own in 2000, his former business associate turned into a foe and placed hurdles for him with the help of a former Minister, an IAS official and some senior police officers. Yet he managed to get the contract for constructing the Government Medical College and Hospital in Pudukottai and completed it ahead of the contract period.
His rivals allegedly launched a smear campaign accusing the Health Minister of parking his funds with Subramaniam and that he was the Minister’s benami . This put him under tremendous stress forcing him to decide to end his life, the letter claimed, adding that an Income Tax officer pressured him to admit that he was the Minister’s benami or he would be physically harmed.
