TIRUPPUR: The Tiruppur city police have detained two youths, including a political party functionary, in connection with the murder of a local Hindu Munnani functionary in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
The deceased was V Balamurugan, (30), of Theni, who was residing on Kamaraj Street in Kumarananthapuram area of Tiruppur city.
Police sources say Balamurugan was into knitwear business and financing along with friends in the city and he was a member of the Tiruppur North Union Executive Committee of the Hindu Munnani.
Balamurugan got married only six months ago.
Balamurugan was attacked early on Wednesday when he was talking to two friends on Kamaraj Street. Two men with sickles arrived all of a sudden and attacked him. Though he tried to escape from them, the duo chased him and hacked him to death. Hearing his screams, his friends and the public gathered but the assailants had already fled.
The Tiruppur North police rushed to spot and rescued his body and sent it to the Tiruppur Government Hospital. KS Praveen Gowtham, Deputy Commissioner of Police, visited the spot.
The police have formed three special teams to nab the culprits.
"It is alleged Balamurugan and a former Hindu Munnani functionary, Suman, had enmity due to local issues. Suman, aged 34, was expelled from the Hindu Munnani and is associated with the Indiya Jananayaka Katchi (IJK) now. This leads to suspicion that Suman murdered Balamurugan through his associates. The police caught Suman and his friend Tamilarasan in Kerala on Wednesday. They are being questioned. The police are searching for Suman's two other friends, Narasimha Praveen and Ashwin," sources said.
Suman is the deputy president of IJK's Tiruppur urban district unit.
Earlier, Balamurugan's relatives and Hindu Munnani cadres blocked the road in front of the GH, demanding the immediate arrest of the culprits. They ended the protest and received the body after the police assured appropriate action.
"The incident occurred around 4 am on Wednesday. We are questioning two people based on suspicion. The motive for the murder will be known only after the arrest of the culprits," Inspector V Jaganathan said.