‘Boxer’ who assaulted constable arrested

CHENNAI: The city police on Thursday claimed to have arrested the youth who created a sensation by repeatedly punching a policeman during the protests against IPL matches in the city in the month of April.
The arrested was identified as M Madhan Kumar (23), a resident of Thillai Nagar, Ennore, and a cadre of  Naam Tamilar Katchi. However, the arrested youth suffered a fracture in one of his hands while under police custody.

Police officers claimed that he suffered the fracture when he tried to escape from police custody by jumping over a compound wall. His photo with a bandaged hand was shared in social media by a few police personnel on Thursday.

The assault on head constable Senthil Kumar took place on April 10, when various outfits were protesting against conducting IPL matches in Chennai, at a time when the State was tense over the Cauvery issue. The video, showing a man delivering repeated punches on the constable, went viral and sparked a controversy when actor Rajinikanth condemned the attack on police, but not the excesses action taken by cops against the protesters.

The city police have been searching for the assailant since and sources said that only on Thursday, on a tip-off, they nabbed Madhan Kumar at his house in Ennore. “In order to escape from the police, he had shaved his head. After we arrested the man and took him to the hospital for check-up, he tried to escape. When jumping over the compound wall, he broke his right hand. The person has been a member of the Naam Thamizhar Katchi. Though with no position in the party, he is actively involved in protests conducted by the party,” said an officer investigating the case.

Similarly, in March, when three men were arrested for assaulting a policeman, they all suffered fractures and police claimed they suffered injuries when trying to escape from the police team.