DINDIGUL: A 45-year-old man from the Scheduled Caste (SC) community was assaulted, allegedly by members of a dominant caste, during a religious festival in Palani on Friday night for increasing the volume of a loudspeaker. Following the attack, the Palani Taluk police registered a case under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act against a 28-year-old man identified as Athiyan, who is currently absconding.
The victim, P Marimuthu, told TNIE, "I have been operating mic sets for the last 30 years in Kodaimangalam panchayat. Every year, the members of the dominant community collect holy water from Kodumudi (Erode) and take it to Dhandayudapani temple in Palani, after offering prayers at the Savadi shelter."
"On Friday evening, they installed loudspeakers and played devotional songs. One group had already proceeded with the holy water towards Palani. Later, Athiyan arrived on a bike and started to argue with me, saying I increased the volume unnecessarily. As I tried to calm him down, he hit me on my face, pushed me to the ground, and kicked me. He then jumped on my back, attempting to injure my spine, before hurling casteist slurs and fleeing the spot," Marimuthu alleged.
Marimuthu was later admitted to the Palani Government Hospital with the help of locals.
Marimuthu's uncle, Sevugaperumal (67), added that Athiyan had initially proceeded towards Palani but turned back after being informed by relatives about the loudspeaker issue. "He returned on a bike with a friend and brutally attacked Marimuthu. Sadly, no one intervened to stop the assault or the use of casteist abuse," he said.
K Iraniyan, an activist, said, "Two years ago, a local female sanitary worker was thrashed by the members of the dominant community for raising a trivial issue. Now, Marimuthu was thrashed for just increasing the volume of the loudspeaker. It is very sad that dominant community people are still showing hatred towards other communities who are socially and economically weak. Despite filing a complaint at the Palani Taluk police station, no one was arrested."
Meanwhile, an officer at Palani Taluk station confirmed that an FIR has been registered against Athiyan under the SC/ST (PoA) Act. "We are investigating the involvement of others in the attack. The accused is absconding. A detailed interrogation will reveal if a larger conspiracy is involved," the officer said.