TIRUNELVELI: Nanguneri police on Tuesday arrested seven youths, including two involved in crimes as juveniles, in connection with the indiscriminate sickle attack on residents in Perumpathu village on Monday night which left two dead and six injured. Police said an inquiry is under way to ascertain whether any other persons were involved in Monday’s attack.
Police identified the arrested accused as S Kannan (21) of Thennimalai, A Uchimahali alias Mittai (20) of Valliyoor, M Vasantha Kumar (21) of Nedunkulam, P Anthony Michel (18), M Subbaia alias Subash (19) and S Kalyani (19) of Thennimalai, and M Raja alias Esakkiraja (19) of Nanguneri.
“The gang arrived on three two-wheelers and attacked at least eight people, killing two on the spot. The deceased were John Mark, a person with disability belonging to the SC community, and D Trinath Kata, a migrant labourer from Odisha. The attackers had worn masks. Most of the victims were standing near a tea shop and a workshop. Trinath was incidentally passing through the spot on his bicycle when he was hacked to death. Similarly, another person riding a two-wheeler was also assaulted. The six injured included members of two BC communities. One of the injured is critical at Tirunelveli Medical College Hospital,” sources said.
Demanding the arrest of all the attackers, residents belonging to SC and BC communities in Perumpathu continued their road blockade for the second day on Tuesday. Several rounds of talks by police officials with them failed. When the protesters attempted to march towards the Tirunelveli-Kanniyakumari four-lane national highway, police stopped them.
Meanwhile, history-sheeter Naveen belonging to MBC community released a video on social media claiming that he was in no way connected with the accused, who, some villagers claimed, were raising slogans praising him during the assault.
The villagers suspect that Monday’s attack was the result of a long-standing caste rivalry between BCs and MBCs.
“Several years ago, an MBC man from Manjankulam had attacked a BC man in Perumpathu village, leaving the latter severely injured. Condemning this, supporters of the BC man murdered the MBC man. In retaliation, the gang (on Monday) went on the rampage, assuming that whoever was found in Perumpathu belonged to BC community. But an SC man and a north Indian migrant labourer were killed,” sources said, adding that a history-sheeter of MBC community had allegedly planned the attack from inside jail. However, police refused to confirm this to TNIE.
Meeting the villagers in Perumpathu, Speaker M Appavu said police would investigate whether the three caste-related incidents — the petrol bomb attack in the SC-dominated Peruntheru, the kerosene bomb attack on a Muthuramalinga Thevar portrait in Thimmarajapuram, and Monday’s attack — were attempts to instigate a caste riot.