New Delhi: The top cop Mr K Vijay Kumar who led the powerful Special Task Force (STF) narrates in his new book Veerappan: Chasing the Brigand, published by Rupa recently. The book throws light on Veerappan’s life with several incidents from his birth in Gopinatham in 1952 to the time he was shot dead in 2004 in Padi. The book traces Veerappan’s meteoric rise from a small-time poacher, high profile sandalwood smuggler to a brutal fugitive who held three states to ransom for two decades. The book written by the Mr K Vijay Kumar officer who led the task force specially created to track down Veerappan describes in detail the ruthless killings and high-profile kidnappings masterminded by Veerappan, including the 108-day ordeal involving Kannada superstar Rajkumar. Veerappan is the only bandit to have captured the public’s imagination as much as Koose Munnasamy Veerappan. Be it his trademark moustache, stories of his daring escapades or his ruthless massacre of officers, Veerappan continues to fascinate, even 13 years after his death. Mr Vijay Kumar, who headed CRPF from 2010-2012, is now serving as Senior Security Adviser in the Home Ministry. Veerappan, who ruled over forest areas in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala for more than two decades, poached over 200 elephants, smuggled ivory worth hundreds of crore of rupees. He killed more than 180 people of whom several of them were police and forest officials. ]]>
