Tight vigil against Maoists, Tigers in disguise

Vigilance and police personnel are keeping a close watch on people with fake or invalid police clearance certificate (PCC) coming to take up jobs in Sannidhanam following an intelligence report of possible infiltration by LTTE cadres and Maoists disguised as Ayyapas. Dewaswom Vigilance had sent back more than 300 labourers from Tamilnadu who arrived with invalid clearance certificate, which they claimed were obtained from their local police station. 


 Police have intensified security measures and put more officials to monitor the situation in the wake of the huge inflow of people in search of jobs at Sabarimala. Reports are that labourers sent back by the officials for want of valid PCC have stayed back in Sannidhanam and nearby places. 


Intelligence wing and police officials are also suspecting these people of harbouring links with the LTTE as most of them belong to Theni, Dindigul and Madurai, where the depleted outfit has some roots. “This can’t be ruled out and we are also suspecting a maoist angle in this. We are keeping a close watch and monitoring people,” said T. Gopalakrishapillai, special vigilance officer adding that identity cards would not be issued to the labourers unless they produce valid PCC. According to vigilance sources, agencies who supply labourers to the shops and hotels at Sabarimala are the foul makers. They obtain clearance certificate in bulk from police stations illegally and recruit the labourers. “We have nabbed people who submitted blank papers with only a police seal as PCC. Authorities should not issue the certificate without doing a proper background check. We scrutinize the documents thoroughly and will not issue identity cards to persons without a valid PCC,” said a top vigilance official at Sannidhanam.