MADURAI: Seven persons were arrested on Saturday in connection with the murder of a 38-year-old history-sheeter, who was killed by unidentified persons near his house at Thanakankulam in Madurai recently. Kaleshwaran, who is the nephew of former DMK functionary VK Gurusamy, was murdered in the wee night hours of last Saturday.
The accused were identified as C Nandhakumar (20) of Sakimangalam, S Muthukrishnan (18) of Manalmedu Thirupuvanam in Sivaganga, Ashen (32) from State Bank colony, A Karthik (28) from Kolathur in Chennai, M Naveenkumar (22) from Kamarajapuram, S Balakrishnan (26) from Manalmedu in Sivaganga and Jayakodi (65) from Kamarajpuram.
According to police, the murder took place around 10 pm, when Kaleshwaran was outside his house. A gang of unidentified persons intercepted and hacked him, resulting in multiple cut injuries. He died on the spot. Kaleshwaran, a native of TNHB Colony in Mela Anuppanadi, had several cases pending against him, police added.
It may be noted VK Gurusamy has a long-standing rivalry with former AIADMK functionary Rajapandian. The two-decade-old gang rivalry between the party functionaries had resulted in several murders on both sides over the years, claiming more than 20 lives. However, the police are yet to confirm the role of Rajapandian and his aides in the murder case.