Two killed, five injured in sickle attack near Nanguneri; Seven arrested

Tirunelveli: Two people were killed and five others injured after a gang armed with sickles attacked people at Perumpathu village near Nanguneri in Tirunelveli district on Monday evening. Police arrested seven suspects within 24 hours amid villagers' protests over inter-village rivalries.The deceased were identified as Trinath Kata of Odisha, residing in Nanguneri, and John Mark of Perumpathu, a person with disabilities. Both sustained severe head and facial injuries and died on the spot. The injured — Saskiumar of Puliyankulam, Ganesan of Veerankulam, and Nelson, Prabhakaran and Ramasamy of Perumpathu — are undergoing treatment in hospital. According to police, around 7.15 pm, a gang entered the village and attacked a group of people standing near a tea shop. The assailants also hurled a Molotov cocktail, which failed to explode, triggering panic among residents. The arrested were identified as Kannan, 21, Anthony Michel, 18, Subbaia alias Subash, 19, and Kalyani, 19, of Thennimalai; Uchimahali alias Mittai, 20, of Valliyur; Vasantha Kumar, 21, of Nedungulam; and Raja, 19, of Nanguneri. A case was registered by Nanguneri police under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the Arms Act and the Explosive Substances Act, based on a complaint from injured Prabhakaran. District superintendent of police V Prassanna Kumar visited the spot and launched an investigation. Forensic teams collected evidence, sniffer dogs were pressed into service and CCTV footage is being analysed. Soon after the incident, villagers staged a road roko demanding immediate arrests. The protest was withdrawn after police assurances, but tensions continued on Tuesday morning, prompting heavy deployment in the area. A brief sit-in was again held before being called off following talks with officials. On Tuesday, additional director-general of police (Law and Order) Maheshwar Dayal, South Zone IG Vijayendra S Bidari and DIG (Tirunelveli Range) P Saravanan reviewed the situation with district police officials. Senior officers said special teams were formed and the suspects were apprehended through coordinated field operations and technical analysis. "There is an old rivalry between the people of the two villages, which prima facie appears to be the motive," an official said. Another senior officer said investigators are also probing whether the accused were under the influence of drugs and added that the attack appeared aimed at establishing dominance by targeting vulnerable people. MSID:: 128979922 413 |