Numbers that lure to kill
Villupuram Family Suicide Due To Mounting Debts, Exposes Underbelly Of Illegal Lottery Trade In TN
D Govardan & R Gokul | TNN 26.12.2019
“For every single case of AIDS detected in India, hundreds go undetected,” said noted physician and microbiologist Suniti Solomon, in the early 1990s. It was this remark that came to one’s mind, when news about the death of a five-member goldsmith family in Villupuram came to light less than a fortnight ago, after the family head had run up huge debts due to his addiction to the ‘three number’ lottery.
“Stop this ‘three number lottery’ menace. At least 10 other families could be saved in this town,” Arun’s video appeal, minutes before he consumed a cyanide-laced drink after giving it to his three daughters and wife, shook social media. The deaths indicate that more than two decades after the sale of lottery was banned in Tamil Nadu, the illegal trade is thriving, not just in Villupuram but across the state. Such a trade cannot sustain without the connivance of police.
“It is because five members of a family died in this case, it attracted a lot of attention. There are many other cases that go unreported. It is time to put an end to this menace,” said P V Ramesh of Makkal Paadhukaappu Kazhagam, a human rights organisation from Villupuram.
For a section of people in Trichy, illegal lottery remains an addiction despite this ruse leaving addicts in severe financial distress and pushing a few debt-ridden to end their lives. “Though the probability of winning is low, addiction forces them to squander their hard-earned money with the false hope of taking in bulk returns one day,” said an addicted customer on condition of anonymity. His friend, who has run up a ₹20 lakh debt, nods in silence.
The nexus between police and illegal lottery agents is evident, with 11 police officers, including three inspectors and three subinspectors, being transferred to armed reserve police in June 2017, following the arrest of illegal lottery kingpin S Manoharan in Trichy.
The transfers were made after senior police officers chanced upon a list of policemen receiving bribe from lottery sellers.
While police crackdown once in a while brings down sales for a few weeks, the same people resume their business after coming out on bail. “All assistant commissioners have been instructed to crack the whip on the illegal lottery sale in the city. We have got some inputs about the key persons and they will soon be arrested,” said Trichy city police commissioner, V Varadharaju.
The illegal business continues unabated in Villupuram, despite the district police boasting about having nabbed several people involved in the trade.
Mannan (name changed), 25-year-old graduate, became addicted to lottery around six years ago. “I got closer to local agents, through whom I got to know the main agent, ‘Reddiyar’ of Villupuram. After gaining his faith, I turned into an agent. Now, I collect a minimum of 500 sets of numbers (tickets) from my 50 regular customers daily. For every ticket, I get a commission of ₹5,” he said.
According to a special branch police officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity, there used to be a competition among policemen to get posted in Villupuram town, west and east police station limits, as the region used to command huge sums of money as bribe from arrack and spurious liquor business.
“After that trade was curtailed, the number lottery has become the mainstay and policemen continue to vie for postings there,” the officer said. In Coimbatore, diehard lottery addicts were known to take a 50km bus ride to Kerala to buy lottery tickets legally. Now, police say several gangs have set up base in the area. Police have busted at least six such networks in the past two years and arrested more than 15 people. But the network is well oiled comprising agents, sub-agents, and local agents who visit various places to collect money from people.
“They had worked in lottery shops in Kerala and learned the tricks of the trade before starting here,” said a police officer.
Tickets from Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and Bhutan are also sold in the state. “The three number lottery is not just an addiction from Kerala. I am told it is quite popular in Malaysia too, where workers from Nagapattinam and Tiruvarur districts have migrated, many of them lost heavily over there too. They retain their addiction when they return home. If it is taken to the attention of the CM, I am sure he will put an end to this menace, just as J Jayalalithaa did to sale of spurious liquor in the 1990s,” says Siva Elango of Satta Panchayat. Sooner the better, since the numbers keep changing by the day.
(With inputs from Karal Marx, V Mayilvaganan and V Devanathan)
Email your feedback with name and address to southpole.toi@timesgroup.com
Villupuram Family Suicide Due To Mounting Debts, Exposes Underbelly Of Illegal Lottery Trade In TN
D Govardan & R Gokul | TNN 26.12.2019
“For every single case of AIDS detected in India, hundreds go undetected,” said noted physician and microbiologist Suniti Solomon, in the early 1990s. It was this remark that came to one’s mind, when news about the death of a five-member goldsmith family in Villupuram came to light less than a fortnight ago, after the family head had run up huge debts due to his addiction to the ‘three number’ lottery.
“Stop this ‘three number lottery’ menace. At least 10 other families could be saved in this town,” Arun’s video appeal, minutes before he consumed a cyanide-laced drink after giving it to his three daughters and wife, shook social media. The deaths indicate that more than two decades after the sale of lottery was banned in Tamil Nadu, the illegal trade is thriving, not just in Villupuram but across the state. Such a trade cannot sustain without the connivance of police.
“It is because five members of a family died in this case, it attracted a lot of attention. There are many other cases that go unreported. It is time to put an end to this menace,” said P V Ramesh of Makkal Paadhukaappu Kazhagam, a human rights organisation from Villupuram.
For a section of people in Trichy, illegal lottery remains an addiction despite this ruse leaving addicts in severe financial distress and pushing a few debt-ridden to end their lives. “Though the probability of winning is low, addiction forces them to squander their hard-earned money with the false hope of taking in bulk returns one day,” said an addicted customer on condition of anonymity. His friend, who has run up a ₹20 lakh debt, nods in silence.
The nexus between police and illegal lottery agents is evident, with 11 police officers, including three inspectors and three subinspectors, being transferred to armed reserve police in June 2017, following the arrest of illegal lottery kingpin S Manoharan in Trichy.
The transfers were made after senior police officers chanced upon a list of policemen receiving bribe from lottery sellers.
While police crackdown once in a while brings down sales for a few weeks, the same people resume their business after coming out on bail. “All assistant commissioners have been instructed to crack the whip on the illegal lottery sale in the city. We have got some inputs about the key persons and they will soon be arrested,” said Trichy city police commissioner, V Varadharaju.
The illegal business continues unabated in Villupuram, despite the district police boasting about having nabbed several people involved in the trade.
Mannan (name changed), 25-year-old graduate, became addicted to lottery around six years ago. “I got closer to local agents, through whom I got to know the main agent, ‘Reddiyar’ of Villupuram. After gaining his faith, I turned into an agent. Now, I collect a minimum of 500 sets of numbers (tickets) from my 50 regular customers daily. For every ticket, I get a commission of ₹5,” he said.
According to a special branch police officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity, there used to be a competition among policemen to get posted in Villupuram town, west and east police station limits, as the region used to command huge sums of money as bribe from arrack and spurious liquor business.
“After that trade was curtailed, the number lottery has become the mainstay and policemen continue to vie for postings there,” the officer said. In Coimbatore, diehard lottery addicts were known to take a 50km bus ride to Kerala to buy lottery tickets legally. Now, police say several gangs have set up base in the area. Police have busted at least six such networks in the past two years and arrested more than 15 people. But the network is well oiled comprising agents, sub-agents, and local agents who visit various places to collect money from people.
“They had worked in lottery shops in Kerala and learned the tricks of the trade before starting here,” said a police officer.
Tickets from Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and Bhutan are also sold in the state. “The three number lottery is not just an addiction from Kerala. I am told it is quite popular in Malaysia too, where workers from Nagapattinam and Tiruvarur districts have migrated, many of them lost heavily over there too. They retain their addiction when they return home. If it is taken to the attention of the CM, I am sure he will put an end to this menace, just as J Jayalalithaa did to sale of spurious liquor in the 1990s,” says Siva Elango of Satta Panchayat. Sooner the better, since the numbers keep changing by the day.
(With inputs from Karal Marx, V Mayilvaganan and V Devanathan)
Email your feedback with name and address to southpole.toi@timesgroup.com
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