CHENNAI: Two autorickshaw drivers have been arrested for allegedly setting a platform dweller on fire near Tiruvanmiyur on Wednesday night. Police said that following a petty quarrel between the man and the drivers who were in an inebriated condition they set him afire.
Police said Govindaraj and his friend Vijayaraj both autorickshaw drivers and residents of Tiruvanmiyur had consumed alcohol on Wednesday night and they reached North Mada Street at Tiruvanmiyur and approached one Krishnamoorthy, a construction worker who was sleeping on the pavement near the bus stop, for a cigarette.
Meanwhile, Govindaraj was filling petrol in the auto from a bottle. As Krishnamoorthy refused to give them a cigarette, Govindaraj poured the petrol on the former to initially threaten him. Later, they allegedly set him on fire and fled the scene, said a police source.
Other pavement dwellers rushed the victim to hospital where he is undergoing treatment. Based on CCTV footage, police arrested the duo who were remanded to judicial custody. Police said the victim sustained 10 per cent burns and is recovering. Krishnamoorthy, a native of Tiruvannamalai, would go home once in a week.
Fire at textile store
A fire broke out in a textile store at Red Hills in the wee hours of Thursday. The owner of the four-storey textile store, David Raj, had closed his shop on Wednesday night and left for home. Around 2.30 am, the security guard found smoke from inside the shop. Police and fire service were alerted. A case has been registered