Muttil tree felling case: Tree felled from pattaya land, accused tried to show that it was from forest land, says Minister A K Saseendran

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Minister A K Saseendran said that if only the forest department had investigated the case of tree felling in Muttil, the accused would have escaped. He said that the tree was felled from pattaya land and an attempt was made to show that it was from forest land.

The minister said that a special team investigated the case to ensure maximum punishment for the accused. He added that trees were felled from the pattaya land under the cover of government order.

Meantime, the farmers said Roji Augustine, the accused in the case, approached them after misleading that he had permission to fell the trees. They said that none of them have signed in any letter seeking permission.

It was found the other day that the permission letters given by the accused were fake. The police found that the letters given to the village office in the name of the land owners were fake. An examination conducted proved that all the seven letters given to the village office were written by Roji Augustine.

The explanation of the accused was that the trees were felled in the context of the permission given as part of the Land Reforms Act. Only trees that grew on its own or planted on lands granted title after the Land Reforms Act came into effect are allowed to be felled under this Act. The order was that the farmer could fell trees except sandalwood.

However, through scientific examination, the investigation team understood that they had cut the trees years before that. They felled trees that are more than 500 years old.