On a day when Vinothini’s mortal remains were cremated at nearby Tirukkadaiyur town, the Karaikal district police on Thursday have reportedly identified the shop from where the accused Suresh had purchased the acid that he threw on the victim .
Sources said that Suresh had bought Nitric acid from a shop, which was selling a variety of acids in the town to laboratories, educational institutions, and for other purposes like agriculture and toilet cleaning, two days prior to the attack.
Suresh threw acid at Vinothini on the night of November 14, 2012. Enquiries with the vendor revealed that Suresh had reportedly bought the acid claiming that he wanted it to be used for cleaning concrete mixing machine in his construction company.
Police have not initiated action on the acid vendor so far, as he has been found to be a genuine seller.
At present, there is no regulation that restricts the sale of acid in such shops.
It may be noted that only a few days ago, the Supreme Court had directed the Union Government to convene a meeting of the Chief Secretaries of States to regulate the sale of acid and prevent its misuse as a weapon against women.
Meanwhile, the body of acid attack victim Vinothini was cremated at her father’s ancestral town Tirukkadaiyur near Porayar in Nagapattinam district on Thursday. Thousands participated in the funeral and paid their last respects. The body reached the ancestral house of the victim’s father Jayapalan on South Street near Amirthakadeswara Temple at Tirukkadaiyur on Wednesday night.