Stop trying to defame us on Coimbatore blast case: Tamil Nadu cops to BJP chief Annamalai

Accusing state BJP chief K Annamalai, “a former Karnataka police officer”, of trying to “defame Tamil Nadu” police on the October 23 Coimbatore car blast case, the state police on Saturday issued a strong statement alleging that he was trying to “divert the probe” into the October 23 incident.

In a two-page statement, the Tamil Nadu Police also rejected Annamalai’s charge that there was a delay in transferring the blast case to the National Investigation Agency (NIA). The statement tore into the ex-IPS officer for “defaming the police continuously by levelling false allegations” against them with regard to the October 23 car blast in Coimbatore that killed Jameesha Mubin, the occupant of the vehicle, instantly,

The state police also said the claim about Union Government issuing a “specific input” about a terror attack (in TN) is “absurd” because the alert that Annamalai mentions is a routine one sent to all states and Union Territories, the statement said.

“There is no specific mention of Coimbatore anywhere in the alert. He (Annamalai) is trying to create a false impression that the police did not act on specific information about the incident. The police would have arrested the suspects and recovered explosives immediately if there was a specific alert about a blast in Coimbatore as Annamalai claims.

“We request the former Karnataka police officer (Annamalai) not to defame the Tamil Nadu police by spreading exaggerated false information,” the statement, which had a political connotation, said. Annamalai, a former Karnataka-cadre IPS officer, joined the BJP in 2020, a year after he sought voluntary retirement from service.

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The statement came as Annamalai continues to train his guns on the TN Police and the DMK government on the issue of the blast by terming it as a “suicide attack” even as the NIA hasn’t categorised the incident as a terror attack as yet.

In his response to the statement, Annamalai said a “point-by-point rebuttal” will be given soon and accused Director General of Police C Sylendra Babu and ADGP (Intelligence) Davidson Devasirvatham of behaving like an “extension” of the ruling DMK.

“Our complaint was especially against the two top officers for failing their basic duties, and no wonder they gave a press release in the name of the TN Police force to protect themselves. Instead of blaming us for bringing down the morale of the force, they should do a proper soul-searching to see where the failure has happened,” Annamalai said.

The police statement accused Annamalai of “trying to divert the probe” by talking in detail about the cylinder that exploded in the car and about materials found inside the vehicle even as the probe is underway. It said the local police usually launch a probe into such incidents immediately after their occurrence.

“If Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) or some clauses of the NIA Act is invoked during investigation, the officer concerned sends a detailed report to the state government, which in turn, informs the Union Government. Based on the nature or magnitude of the case, the Union Government will order an inquiry by the NIA within 15 days,” it said.

But, the statement added, sometimes it takes even a month to transfer the case to NIA, and till then, it is the state police that continues the probe.

“In the Coimbatore LPG cylinder blast case, the procedure was followed thoroughly and without any delay, the state government recommended a probe by the NIA. In some important cases, the Union Home Ministry will sue motu transfer the case to NIA. But in the case of the Coimbatore incident, the state government recommended the transfer of the case to NIA even before the Union Government released an order,” the TN police said.