MADURAI: The Ramanathapuram district police on Monday unearthed a large quantity of
ammunition and explosives on the seashore on
Rameswaram island. No weapon was found.
Senior officials estimate the ammunition to be more than 25 years old. Its make and origin have not been ascertained. In 1990, a similar cache of ammunition was dug up in the region. Police said they had so far counted more than 5,000
bullets. A first information report will be registered under Section 102 of the CrPC – power of police officer to seize certain property - and a detailed inquiry conducted.
A fisherman from Thangachimadam found a couple of packs of ammunition while digging a pit to construct a septic tank in the backyard of his house. Alarmed on seeing ammunition, he stopped digging and alerted the police. A team led by Ramanathapuram DSP Omprakash Meena soon arrived at the spot and further digging was carried out.
Sources said the ammunition could have been part of the cache left behind by Tamil militant groups like the EPRLF and the ENDLF when they fled the country after the killing of EPRLF leader K Pathmanabha in June 1990, a year before the assassination of former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi (on May 21, 1991). India is believed to have armed these militant groups after the 1987 Indo-Sri Lanka agreement.
‘We are investigating their make and origin’
Talking to newspersons, Omprakash Meena said rounds used in various weapons like medium machine guns, heavy
machine guns and SLR were found. Besides, TNT explosive packs and detonator wires were also found. “At present we are counting the number of the rounds seized and investigating their make and origin. They could be more than 25 years old,” he said.
Manual labourers were involved at first and an earth mover was employed later on. The search operation was continuing. A case would be registered, he said. Apart from the district police, various central and state agencies like the Q branch are camping at the island.
