MADURAI: Following the spread of a video on social media in Karnataka portraying a routine road accident with misinformation, Inspector General of Police (South Zone) Vijayendra Bidari on Sunday said it was a false narrative and clarified that there is no tension between the two states.
Speaking to reporters in Madurai alongside Deputy Inspector General of Police (Dindigul Range) P Saminathan and Theni SP B Sneha Priya, Bidari said an accident took place on January 12 within the Allinagaram police station limits in Theni involving a lorry from Tamil Nadu and a van carrying pilgrims from Karnataka. Subsequently, a clip of the incident was circulated on social media alleging it to be a targeted attack against people from the neighbouring state.
“The accident occurred at the Dindigul bypass around 4.30 pm and it was not intentional”, Bidari said, adding no one was injured and only the rear light of the van was damaged. He added that a language barrier prevented both sides from understanding the arguments during the altercation.
“Although a heated verbal argument broke out between the occupants of the van and the lorry driver, police reached the spot immediately after being alerted. Theni police even urged the van’s occupants to lodge a formal complaint, as the accident was the lorry driver’s fault. However, no complaint has been filed by anyone yet,” he said.
The IG further stated that Allinagaram police imposed fine on the lorry driver and arrested one individual at the scene for acting in a prejudiced manner. An inquiry has also been ordered into the conduct of the police personnel present at the scene, he said.
Regarding the social media posts, he said some individuals were portraying the event as a major conflict and spreading falsehood. Theni SP Priya has written to her counterpart in Chamarajanagar of Karnataka, regarding the “unwarranted divisive narrative” of the video. Karnataka state police have also commenced an investigation.
The IG said police are working to identify who posted the misleading videos and warned of action against those spreading false narratives.