Tamil Nadu life convict Selvam’s book Oru Thooku Kaithiyin Vaakumoolam wins Iyal Award of Canada

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Oru Thooku Kaithiyin Vaakumoolam (Testimony of a Death Warrant Prisoner), penned by life convict C. Selvam. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Oru Thooku Kaithiyin Vaakumoolam (Testimony of a Death Warrant Prisoner), penned by life convict C. Selvam, has been selected for the Iyal Award for non-fiction by the Canada-based Tamil Literary Garden. This is probably the first time that the award has gone to a writer who has been living in prison for 32 years.

“I consider it an award for my reading. I could not study beyond Class 9, and reading sustained me in prison all these years,” said Selvam, who is now lodged in Vellore prison, currently out on parole. Selvam, a native of Thenthamaraikulam in Kanniyakumari district, said his favourite authors include Sundara Ramasamy, S. Ramakrishnan, Nanjil Nadan and Jayamohan.

Selvam also received a message from noted Sri Lankan writer A. Muthulingam, who lives in Canada, congratulating him on the award for a book . The award carries 1000 Canada Dollars.

Selvam and his associates surrendered before a court in Nagercoil in connection with a murder in 1994. Though he and his friends Radhakrishnan and Shiekmeeran were awarded the death sentence, it was later commuted to life imprisonment by the President, on the condition that they spend the rest of their lives in prison.

In prison, Selvam started reading books, and his voracious reading resulted in a memoir that was released in December 2025. It was made possible by Badri Seshadri of Kizhakku Pathippagam, who had a chance encounter with Selvam in Tiruchi jail, where he was lodged in connection with his alleged remarks against the judiciary. Justice K. Chandru wrote the foreword to the book.

The book, surpasses even gripping crime thrillers and films, strongly advocates prison reforms and truthfully records life behind bars. Justice Chandru said he had decided to write the foreword because Selvam had written the truth.

Mr. Seshadri said the book was likely to win many awards as it seemed to have touched people across multiple domains, not just for its literary aspects but also for the way it dealt with legal issues. “It has made a significant impact on the legal fraternity, including judges,” he said.

A press release from the Tamil Literary Garden said the Lifetime Achievement Award would go to Trotsky Marudhu, the fiction award to writer Thirusenthalai, the non-fiction award to C. Selvan and Sankar Saravanan, the poetry award to Karunakaran, and the translation award to Geetha Sukumaran.

The organisers of the award have asked Selvam to depute a representative to collect the award on his behalf.

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