TIRUNELVELI
Two life convicts, who have served over 10 years of their conviction in Palayamkottai Central Prison after being sentenced in different murder cases, were released from the jail on Tuesday under the premature release of prisoners in connection with MGR Birth Centenary Celebrations.
Emerging from the prison complex on Tuesday morning, 47-year-old Muthupandi of Periyapudhur near Sankarankovil and 52-year-old Periyasamy of Paimpozhil near Shencottai, said they would start a dairy farm soon with the help of their relatives and friends to lead a new life.
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After murdering his brother-in-law Murugaiah Pandian in 1999 in a property dispute, Mr. Muthupandi was arrested and awarded life imprisonment in 2002. Though he entered the jail with a pass in the third standard, he left the prison with a pass in 8th standard.
“After learning the art of yoga in the jail, he became the yoga teacher for fellow prisoners,” said a prison official.
Mr. Periyasamy was awarded life imprisonment for murdering a woman in 1999. As his parents passed away even as he was in prison, Mr. Periyasamy is still a bachelor. “He was an assistant to the cooks of prison kitchen,” said the official.
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Though the Palayamkottai Central Prison authorities had sent a list of over 200 life convicts with spotless record even as they were serving their sentence in the jail for release, the premature release of just two persons shocked the fellow prisoners.
“We’ve explained to them that they would be released in several batches after the scrutiny,” the official said.