Vaiko vows to put Chandrababu in jail for encounter

`Vaiko' V. Gopalasamy, founder general secretary of Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, has said that if his party, the MDMK, came to power, it would put Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu in jail for the Seshachalam encounter in which 20 Tamil woodcutters and smugglers were killed last year. Vaiko, who is of Telugu origin, like many of the leaders in Tamil Nadu, was talking in Karur at an election meeting on Monday. He said innocent Tamil coolies, who were only cutting and smuggling redsanders logs, were encountered in the incident. Chandrababu, who accounted for innocent Tamil smugglers, would be put in jail if his party were to come to power. Already a court case is going on regarding the encounter. The `innocent' Tamil smugglers also acccounted for many lives of the police and forest guards in the past. Redsanders is unique fragrant wood tree found in the Rayalaseema forests and has market in China and other Asian countries for its supposed erotic value. Even today, Tamil smugglers continue to raid the Seshachalam forests, for smuggling is more paying than all Amma schemes.