Two gana singers hacked to death with machetes and sickles by armed gang in Tamil Nadu

CHENNAI: Two gana singers were hacked to death by an armed gang that stormed into a house in Manimangalam in the early hours of Sunday.

The victims, identified as Bharath Kumar, 25, and Srinivasan, 24, residents of Varadharajapuram near Padappai, were known for performing gana songs at local music events.

According to police sources, the duo had performed at a music concert on Saturday night and later chose to stay at their friend Lokesh's house in Ammanambakkam near Manimangalam instead of returning home.

Early Sunday morning, a gang of six unidentified people arrived on three two-wheelers. Wearing helmets to conceal their identities, they broke open the door and entered the house. The attackers first attempted to assault Lokesh, who managed to escape.

The gang then turned on Bharath and Srinivasan, hacking them repeatedly with machetes and sickles. Bharath died inside the house, while Srinivasan collapsed near the entrance in a pool of blood.

Lokesh's father, Mohan, 45, who tried to intervene, sustained cut injuries and has been admitted to a private hospital.

Manimangalam police recovered the bodies and sent them for postmortem to the govt hospital in Tambaram.

Police have registered a case and are investigating multiple angles, including possible prior enmity or whether the attack was linked to Lokesh or his associates.