Sivaganga anti-liquor protester alleges ganja planted to frame him

CHENNAI: A Sivaganga shopkeeper found himself caught in what looked like a sinister plot from a movie when unidentified men entered his shop and planted ganja in order to allegedly implicate him in a drugs case. However, a CCTV camera installed at his store saved the day for the man who had been up in arms against a liquor store in his neighbourhood in Tirupattur.

The nefarious plot unfolded on Thursday when two men in plain clothes arrived at the shop claiming to be personnel of the Prohibition Enforcement Wing and reportedly told Rajkumar they wanted to search his shop as they received information that he was selling ganja and banned gutka.

The two men allegedly went straight to a particular spot near the shop and retrieved concealed ganja. Suspecting foul play, Rajkumar checked the CCTV footage and found that minutes before the prohibition officers arrived, a person employed at a private bar adjoining the government liquor outlet allegedly concealing ganja in a water channel nearby.

Rajkumar copied the CCTV footage and, accompanied by others from the village, took it to the Sivaganga Superintendent of Police’s office. He submitted the footage along with a complaint and sought action against those who carried out the alleged attempt to frame him in a drugs case. In his complaint, Rajkumar alleged that the two men went straight to the spot where the ganja was concealed, retrieved it and attempted to implicate him for possessing the contraband for sale.

Rajkumar has been demanding the closure of a government-run Tasmac outlet and an adjoining private bar at Thirukalapatti, near Tirupattur.

Villagers have staged repeated protests against the outlet, alleging it has affected the local community. A road blockade was also held a few days ago under Rajkumar’s leadership.