TIRUPPUR: A 55-year-old man belonging to Narikoravar (ST Community) who was tied to a tree, along with his nephew, and beaten up by a group of land owners in Udumalaipet on Wednesday morning suspecting him to be a thief, succumbed to injuries in hospital in the evening. Police arrested three people and are searching for six others.
According to police, Sengottaiyan (55) and his nephew Kumar (25), natives of R Ponnapuram in Pollachi, used to sell beads and other items. On Dec 27, the two spotted some birds in farmland at Kumarapalayam in Thanthoni village and tried to catch some. A group of landowners detained them, tied them to a coconut tree and thrashed them with sticks and coconut trunks. The two suffered severe injuries in the head, back, stomach and shoulders. After a while, the farmers left them to go. The two were admitted to Udumalaipet Government Hospital. But Sengottaiyan died in the evening. On Thursday, their family members staged a protest in front of the hospital,
Speaking to TNIE, DSP (Udumalaipet Division) J Sukumaran said, “Sengottaiyan and Kumar were walking in the farmlands for some time, and land owners suspected them to be thieves and raised the alarm. People from farmland close by arrived and started to assault them even though they pleaded with them saying they were just wandering the site.
As there was frequent theft of cocks and hens in the area, the landowners refused to believe them. After the landowners released them, the two walked to a teashop, but Sengottaiyan felt very uncomfortable and they got themselves admitted to Udumalaipet Government Hospital. A case was registered and we have arrested landowners Selvakumar (34), SasiKumar (35), and Selladurai (39). Six others are on the run.