The police have detained eight youth with deadly weapons when they were sleeping in the house of a history-sheeter at Thatchanallur near here on Wednesday.
Sources said Thalavai, 29, of Azhagiyapandiapuram near Maanur, who was coming to Tirunelveli on his bike on Monday via Ramaiyanpatti, saw a police team checking vehicles ahead of Santhimariththamman Temple. To avert the check, Thalavai took the street opposite Thatchanallur police station to reach Madurai Main Road via the alternative route.
As Thalavai had stuck the sticker ‘Pasumpon’ on his bike in red and yellow colour and was wearing a wrist band in the same colour, used by a particular caste, a group belonging to another caste, who were standing on that street forcibly stopped the two-wheeler. When the youth thrashed Thalavai, he abandoned the bike and escaped from the spot. After Thalavai informed the police about the attack, the Thatchanallur police registered a case.
Since the police suspected that those who attacked Thalavai were the supporters of Kannapiraan, founder of Devendrakula Velaalar Makkal Ezhuchchi Iyakkam, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Tirunelveli, Sathish, and Inspector of Police, Thatchanallur, Vanasundar, entered the house of Kannapiraan.
As eight youths, including Kannapiraan, were sleeping in the house, the police overpowered them and seized 10 aruvaals, a petrol bomb and a few more weapons before they could use it against the police.
They were identified as Ammu, 23, Bhaskar, 32, Arunkumar, 23, Rameswaran, 23, Chinnathambi, 24, Kombaiah, 23, Manikandan, 31 and Abhinesh, 22, all from Pakkapatti, Ottapidaaram, Sethurayanpudhur and Reddiyarpatti. “Most of them are wanted in connection with some criminal cases registered in various police stations,” the police said.
Kannapiraan said a few youths assaulted a person as he was moving around on his bike a few times in a suspicious manner “in his area” and “handed over his bike” to the police. “If the police really wanted to arrest those who assaulted the stranger, I would have handed them over to the police. However, the police, who have joined hands with oppressive forces, are targeting us,” he charged.
The staff at the Intelligence Section of Tirunelveli City Police maintained that they were yet to get the details from the Thatchanallur station.