Human sacrifice: Two employees appear before police

Two days after skeletons of four persons allegedly buried by quarry owners were exhumed from a burial ghat near Melur, two employees of a granite company today appeared before police.
Manager of PRP Granites, Ayappan and quarry-in-charge Jothibasu appeared before the police though police had issued summons to four persons, police said.
The bones of the four persons had been sent for forensic tests yesterday after registering a case against the owner of the granite company.
The skeletons recovered were that of a baby and three men, police said.
IAS officer U Sagayam, appointed by Madras High Court as Legal Commissioner to probe "illegal" granite quarrying in this district, had ordered digging of some sites where some persons were allegedly killed as 'human sacrifice' and believed to be buried by quarry owners four years ago.

Sagayam ordered digging of the sites at E.Malampatti on the banks of the Manimutharu on a complaint that mentally challenged persons had been given as "human sacrifice" in one of the granite quarries in 2011.

The complaint was given by one of the drivers of heavy machineries working with the PRP granite export company, retired ADSP Velu, assisting Sagayam in his investigations had said.
A case had been registered against Palanisamy, owner of the firm and some others last week in this connection but the company has denied the allegation.
Officials, who exhumed the remains, said only forensic report could reveal if the bodies had been given in sacrifice.

The security at the Keezhavalavu police station, where investigation regarding the suspicious deaths and and human sacrifice, had been registered.
ADSP Mariappan and DSP Mangaleswaran conducted the investigation.