COIMBATORE: Two persons were injured in a clash between the workers of Hindu Munnani and the inmates of Sri Lankan refugee camp at Poluvampatti, near Alanthurai on the outskirts of Coimbatore in the wee hours of Sunday. Five men have been arrested in connection with the incident.
The Hindu Munnani activists also allegedly hurled a petrol bomb at the camp and vandalised four vehicles there. Tension still prevails at the camp.
“The noise made by the petrol bomb left us sleepless,” said a refugee. “Along with two family members, I have come out of the camp fearing for life. We will return once the situation returns to normal,” he added.
However, the police denied that a bomb was thrown at the camp. Alanthurai Inspector Arun Murugan said that no such thing happened.
According to Alanthurai police, around 5 pm on Saturday, two teams of youngsters in the refugee camp were playing volleyball. After the match ended around 10 pm, Vijay and Antony, both from the camp, fought with each other in a drunken state. Siva (52), also an inmate of the camp, tried to pacify them, but the two youth pushed him down and scolded him.
To retaliate, Siva’s son Kabil alias Sukendra Kumar approached a Hindu Munnani functionary in the locality. Its suburban district secretary G Ramesh then called the two youth over the phone and abused them, leading to a quarrel over the phone. An agitated Ramesh, along with a few Hindu Munnani workers, trespassed into the camp around 1 am on Sunday and challenged the two to come out of their houses, the police said.
“At that time, Suman alias Charles Jayaseelan, who did not have any connection with the incident, came out of the camp’s common toilet. Suman was caught by the Hindu Munnani workers and beaten up with wooden rods. He also suffered cuts from a sickle. Hearing his cries, some youth in the camp came to the spot. There was an exchange of blows between the refugee youth and the Hindu Munnani cadres,” said a police official.
Following the fight, the Hindu Munnani cadre allegedly hurled petrol bomb at the camp.
“In this incident, refugee Suman suffered grievous injuries as he was beaten up and hacked with a sickle on his forehead. Hindu Munnani’s Ramesh, who was beaten with a wooden rod, suffered injuries on the head,” the official said.