Cases registered against 1,000 unidentified persons for Ponnaamravathi incidents.
Security beefed up at Ponnamaravathi on Saturday
Pudukottai:
Besides, the Pudukkottai administration has clamped section 144 in Ponnamaravathi town and 30 surrounding villagers for three days till Sunday, and the Tasmac outlets were to be kept closed these days.
According to police, two of its personnel, V Mathesh and V Karuppaiah, were injured while eight police vehicles were vandalised by the rioters. On Saturday, a case was filed against 1,000 members of Ponnamaravathi and neighbouring villages. Meanwhile, cases under various sections including PPD Act was registered against the rioters based on the complaint by TNSTC bus driver V Vijayabalan, for damaging three government buses.
Police are trying to identify the rioters from videos and photos recorded during the riots. They have been searching for leads based on the audio and the references provided in it. They were allegedly searching villages near the Thanjavur-Pudukkottai district border. Sources said that three persons were apprehended from the villages there for questioning.
More policemen have been stationed at the Ponnamaravathi police station, where the riot had broken out. They were also stationed at several other important locations. IG V Varadhalajalu has also visited the station for discussions.
Meanwhile, an uneasy calm engulfed some parts of Sivaganga district. Protesters in large numbers, especially women carrying broom sticks, took to the national highway in Singampuneri before taking out a procession from the Ayyanar temple and blocked vehicular traffic on the stretch demanding immediate arrest of those responsible for posting such objectionable content.
Traffic was affected for over an hour as Revenue officials failed to pacify the agitators. Subsequently, the protesters laid siege to the Singampuneri taluk office demanding action. Traders there downed their shutters as a precautionary measure. Similar blockades were also held in few pockets of Karaikudi, sources said.
Later, South Zone IG KP Shanmuga Rajeswaran, Sivaganga SP T Jeyachandran and a team of officials pacified the crowd and dispersed them, sources said.
In Sivaganga, Collector J Jayakanthan said adequate precautionary measures have been taken to prevent any untoward incident. He told DT Next on Saturday that to maintain law and order and to ensure peace and tranquility, the Tasmac authorities were instructed to shut their outlets wherever required. However, there were no common order for the closure of all Tasmac outlets.
The police and Revenue officials have been monitoring the situation to prevent any untoward incident. Besides, officers in the rank of Executive Magistrate were also involved in monitoring the situation across the district, Jayakanthan said. Police personnel in neighbouring districts were also mobilised for security operations, sources said.
Even as the Pudukkottai police registered cases against 1,000 unidentified persons in connection with the vandalism on Friday, the caste tension, which broke out at Ponnaamravathi following a social media post, spread to some parts of neighbouring Sivaganga district on Saturday.
Besides, the Pudukkottai administration has clamped section 144 in Ponnamaravathi town and 30 surrounding villagers for three days till Sunday, and the Tasmac outlets were to be kept closed these days.
According to police, two of its personnel, V Mathesh and V Karuppaiah, were injured while eight police vehicles were vandalised by the rioters. On Saturday, a case was filed against 1,000 members of Ponnamaravathi and neighbouring villages. Meanwhile, cases under various sections including PPD Act was registered against the rioters based on the complaint by TNSTC bus driver V Vijayabalan, for damaging three government buses.
Police are trying to identify the rioters from videos and photos recorded during the riots. They have been searching for leads based on the audio and the references provided in it. They were allegedly searching villages near the Thanjavur-Pudukkottai district border. Sources said that three persons were apprehended from the villages there for questioning.
More policemen have been stationed at the Ponnamaravathi police station, where the riot had broken out. They were also stationed at several other important locations. IG V Varadhalajalu has also visited the station for discussions.
Meanwhile, an uneasy calm engulfed some parts of Sivaganga district. Protesters in large numbers, especially women carrying broom sticks, took to the national highway in Singampuneri before taking out a procession from the Ayyanar temple and blocked vehicular traffic on the stretch demanding immediate arrest of those responsible for posting such objectionable content.
Traffic was affected for over an hour as Revenue officials failed to pacify the agitators. Subsequently, the protesters laid siege to the Singampuneri taluk office demanding action. Traders there downed their shutters as a precautionary measure. Similar blockades were also held in few pockets of Karaikudi, sources said.
Later, South Zone IG KP Shanmuga Rajeswaran, Sivaganga SP T Jeyachandran and a team of officials pacified the crowd and dispersed them, sources said.
In Sivaganga, Collector J Jayakanthan said adequate precautionary measures have been taken to prevent any untoward incident. He told DT Next on Saturday that to maintain law and order and to ensure peace and tranquility, the Tasmac authorities were instructed to shut their outlets wherever required. However, there were no common order for the closure of all Tasmac outlets.
The police and Revenue officials have been monitoring the situation to prevent any untoward incident. Besides, officers in the rank of Executive Magistrate were also involved in monitoring the situation across the district, Jayakanthan said. Police personnel in neighbouring districts were also mobilised for security operations, sources said.
Villagers block road in Tiruvannamalai
A group of villagers in Tiruvannamalai district on Friday night blocked the Tiruvannamalai–Tindivanam road demanding action against a certain community for allegedly spreading rumours about them on social media. Trouble started when some miscreants from Parayampattu village recorded a video, in which they abused a particular community residing in their neighbouring Kattampoondi village. This irked the targetted group who staged the road roko demanding the arrest of the culprits. On information, Thachampattu police rushed to the spot and tried to pacify the agitators. However, they refused to lift the blockade until the culprits were arrested. Following an assurance that the police will take necessary action in this regard, the blockade was lifted and traffic resumed on the road.