CHENNAI: The Chennai police are probing a network of high-profile history-sheeters and their ties in the murder of Tamil Nadu BSP president K Armstrong. So far, 14 people have been arrested in the case, of them, one was killed in a police encounter on Sunday.
The police revealed that they are searching for a BJP functionary M Anjalai (48) from North Chennai.
A B-category history-sheeter, Anjalai is the partner of murdered rowdy ‘Arcot’ Suresh, whose brother ‘Ponnai’ Balu and his relative were among the first eight persons arrested in the case.
D Selvaraj (49) from Thiruninravur, a BJP functionary in Thiruvallur, was also arrested soon after the murder. Police sources said the arrests were made based on monetary transactions and that more history-sheeters are on their radar, especially an influential one in North Chennai.
On Wednesday evening, the police arrested advocate Malarkodi, an AIADMK functionary from Triplicane. She is the wife of history-sheeter ‘Thottam’ Sekar, who was murdered in 1997. Malarkodi’s son Azhaguraja had allegedly murdered another history-sheeter ‘Mylai’ Siva in West Mambalam in March 2021, to avenge his father’s death.
The police also arrested advocate Hariharan; sources said lakhs of rupees were transferred from the bank accounts of Malarkodi and Hariharan to one of the arrested, G Arul. The AIADMK removed Malarkodi from the party; Hariharan was expelled from his post of youth wing leader of the Tamil Maanila Congress.
Senior police officials had said the murder was a revenge for Suresh’s killing in August last year, as Suresh’s family suspected the BSP leader’s role in it.
BJP on Thursday announced that it has expelled Anjalai, the vice president of the party’s North Chennai west unit, from the post and the primary membership of the party.