When Gopal had gone into the MM hills in August-September 2000 to ‘placate’ the brigand, AIADMK chief J. Jayalalitha had accused the then chief minister, M. Karunanidhi, of "masterminding the diabolical drama". In the same breath, she had accused the Nakkheeran editor of being a "blackmailer and an agent of Veerappan". In the May 2002 assembly elections too, the AIADMK manifesto mentioned Gopal as a criminal. So, no surprise that JJ, as chief minister, should go for Gopal.
First, his reporter P. Sivasubramanian was picked up on November 20, 2001, by the STF in Salem. Sivasubramanian was the first to interview Veerappan. In January, Gopal filed writ petitions in the Madras High Court to restrain the two state governments from arresting him or raiding his magazine’s offices. The final hearing is on June 13. The summons to Gopal ahead of this indicates Amma’s keenness to book the maverick journo. Next target: Karunanidhi? Big V, of course, is still at large.
