Inner party feuding led to the killing of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) functionary N. Suresh Babu alias ‘Pottu' Suresh, according to police.
After interrogating the seven suspects over the last six days, the police have inferred that the gang acted on instructions from a DMK functionary, V.P. Pandi alias ‘Attack’ Pandi, who is absconding. “We are on the lookout for him. We hope to secure him soon,” said Inspector General and Commissioner of Police Sanjay Mathur here on Monday.
The suspects, who were produced before the Judicial Magistrate Court here, were sent back to Salem prison for a fortnight, police said.
Based on the confessions, the police teams have recovered a goods vehicle and a two-wheeler used in the crime. Physical evidence has been recorded from the scene of crime and weapons and blood stained clothes were recovered three days ago.
While one team is entrusted with the task of securing ‘Attack’ Pandi, the next course of investigation would be to examine those who had been named by the seven-member gang. “We will examine them with specific information gathered in the confessions,” Mr. Sanjay Mathur said.
After Suresh was killed on the night of January 31 at a spot close to Union Minister M.K. Alagiri’s residence, the killers had escaped in a vehicle.
At first, polics suspected the involvement of people outside the DMK. However, as the investigation progressed, the police zeroed in on ‘Attack’ Pandi, sources said.
For many years, Pandi had a feeling that his growth in the party was stopped by ‘Pottu’ Suresh who had gained close access to Mr. Alagiri by then.
Within and outside the party, Suresh emerged as an extra-constitutional authority with nothing in the southern districts moved without his nod during the DMK regime in 2006-11.
When the DMK lost power and the AIADMK returned in 2011, things changed. The police arrested ‘Pottu’ Suresh on charges of land grabbing, cheating and other criminal offences.
After serving more than five months in prison, Suresh came out on bail. He has not been seen with the Union Minister in public since then. When there was information that Suresh started visiting Mr. Alagiri privately, there was apprehension again that he may make a comeback, police said.
