TIRUPPUR: Seven persons were arrested in connection with the attempted murder of the key witness in the murder of high court advocate Muruganantham.
The suspects were identified as D Saraswathi (55) of Dharapuram, and Hema (47) of Salem, Mohammed Risanth (30) and Mohammed Shamim (32) from Malappuram, Rashid (36) from Kasaragod in Kerala, Babu Sahulin (32) from Nagercoil, and Nandakumar (52) from Dharapuram.
Police said L Muruganantham (41), a high court advocate who fought for the rights of the disabled from Muthu Nagar in Dharapuram in Tiruppur district, was hacked to death near Thenmalar Matriculation Higher Secondary School in Dharapuram on July 28. 18 persons have been arrested in connection with the case, including Muruganantham’s uncle and school owner R Dhandapani (65) and his son Karthik.
M Thangavel (42) of Ganapathipalayam in Dharapuram, the complainant and the first eyewitness, was travelling on his bike on July 7 when an unknown gang allegedly attacked him with sharp weapons. The victim sustained injuries and is undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Coimbatore.
Bar associations and social activists condemned the incident and sought action. Against this backdrop, six special teams were formed by the district police to investigate this incident. An intensive inquiry was conducted under the supervision of West Zone DIG P Saminathan and District SP Shristi Singh.