TENKASI: In connection with the 4-year-old girl's car accident inside the private school premises, Puliyangudi police found that the owner of the car and his friend were intoxicated at the time of the incident in Tenkasi. "The man who drove the car was so drunk that he did not even realise that he had hit the child," the police said on Wednesday, adding that both the suspects were arrested.
The suspects were identified as Ramkanth (42) of Mullikulam and his friend Senthil Raju (32) of Ilanchi. "The deceased, Siva Yazhini, was run over by the car on Tuesday evening while she was waiting on the school grounds for her van. The suspects had visited the school in an inebriated state to meet the correspondent of the school, who is their friend," the sources said.
When contacted by TNIE, Superintendent of Police G S Madhavan confirmed their arrest.
Meanwhile, villagers and relatives of the girl continued their protest for the second day at the Tenkasi-Madurai national highway, demanding justice for Yazhini's death. Police diverted traffic through alternative routes and held talks with the protesters. The 20-hour protest ended in the afternoon after prolonged negotiations by Madhavan.
The protesters said police had assured them that they would oppose bail for the suspects and get compensation from the school administration. Alleging that the school administration did not inform the parents about the child's death, Yazhini's parents told media persons that when they reached the school, the bloodstains at the scene had been covered with sand. "We want to check the CCTV footage to verify what actually happened. The correspondent and principal should also be booked," the relatives demanded.