A mob of over 200 persons pelted stones on a police team in which five police personnel, including a Deputy Superintendent of Police, were injured and a few police vehicles, a fire tender and an ambulance were damaged near Melur in Madurai in the early hours of Tuesday.
The police party, led by Additional Superintendent of Police, S. Vanitha, had rushed to Vellalapattipudur, under the Kottampatti police station limits, past Monday midnight, when they received information about the installation of a statue of Muthuramalinga Thevar without permission. Local residents had installed the five-foot high cement statue near the village ground, late in the night.
When the police team, along with Revenue officials, attempted to remove the statue, the mob that had been objecting to the statue removal suddenly started to pelt stones on the police officials.
“One of them had switched off power supply by turning off the transformer,” a police officer said. Making use of the pitch darkness, the mob surrounded the small police force and started to pelt stones.
Though the police managed to switch on the power within five minutes, by then the police personnel had suffered injuries.
Deputy Superintendent of Police (Oomachikulam), Vijayakumar, sustained injuries. He has been admitted to a private hospital in Madurai. Among others injured are Kottampatti Sub-Inspector of Police, Suthan, Special Sub-Inspector of Police, Palaniappan and two Tamil Nadu Special Police constables, Deenadayalan and Arunkumar. All the injured have been admitted to the government hospital in Melur.
Police vehicles of the ADSP, DSP, a fire tender and an ambulance were damaged in the incident, the police said.
The police said that the statue had been removed and brought to the Melur Taluk office.
Deputy Inspector General of Police (Madurai), R. Sudhakar and Superintendent of Police, Sujit Kumar, inspected the scene of crime.
The police have picked up 15 suspects in this connection.