Cushy life for jailed DMK men

TIRUNELVELI/MADURAI: Four DMK men lodged in the Palayamkottai Central Prison in Tirunelveli have been allegedly receiving extraneous privileges.Union Minister M K Alagiri’s henchmen ‘Pottu’ Suresh alias N Suresh Babu, G Thalapathi, Kodi Chandrasekar and K Krishnapandi were sent to jail on a complaint that they had allegedly forced a couple to sell their 5.14 acres of land in Thirumangalam. Though lodged in the Remand Prisoners’ Ward in ordinary class, the DMK functionaries were allegedly getting cigarettes, liquor and hotel food. They also carried mobile phones with them.“Nothing is impossible in prison. One can get such privileges, if he is ready to shell out cash,” a jail source said, adding “the allegations cannot be neglected.”But during his jail visit last week, Alagiri had claimed that he knew nothing about whether his men got first class facilities in prison. There have been allegations about the illegal functioning of a makeshift kitchen on the Palayamkottai jail premises till a month ago. The kitchen allegedly supplied sumptuous meals to the prisoners on payment.When contacted, a senior police official said they have received intelligence inputs and were making efforts to curtail the privilege accorded to the DMK men in prison.