TIRUNELVELI: A 55-year-old man who was attacked by his relative during a peace meeting with officials to discuss an election boycott died in the hospital on Thursday. Police identified the deceased as Kaavumuthu, a daily wage labourer from Thathanoothu village.
According to sources, 300 SC families, who live in the village, have been protesting for years against violations allegedly caused by the stone quarries such as use of high-power explosives. Condeming this, they decided to boycott the elections and put up posters all over the village.
Upon knowing this, the DEO-cum-District Collector Dr R Sukumar on Wednesday directed revenue officials to convene a peace meeting to resolve the issue and convince the villagers to take part in the democratic process.
During the meeting a scuffle broke out between two groups of villagers. Kaavumuthu was attacked by his relative Ananth (35) with hands, following which he complained of chest pain. He was taken to the Tirunelveli Medical College Hospital where the police collected his statement and arrested Ananth. Kaavumuthu died on Thursday in the hospital.
Preliminary inquiry revealed that the deceased already had a heart disease, police said.