Two Hindu Munnani members among four arrested for assaulting guest workers in Coimbatore

COIMBATORE: The Variety Hall police in Coimbatore city arrested four men, including two Hindu Munnani members, for assaulting guest workers after picking up an argument with them near Mahaliamman Kovil in Edayar Street on Sunday night.
Gowtham Siyamel Kattuva, a guest worker, has been working in a gold smithery unit for the past six years. He is staying in Edayar Street with a few other guest workers. On Sunday night, he was walking in the same street with his friends, Thanmai Jana and Jakath, a police officer said.
Surya Prakash, 19, of Palanisamy Colony and P Prakash, 21, of Sulivan Street, Pragadeesh and Velmurugan came in the opposite direction. The four youths picked up a quarrel with the guest workers for not giving way to them. Surya Prakash assaulted the trio. All the three guest workers suffered injuries on their face in the assault. Prakash, Pragadeesh and Velumurugan joined him in threatening them, he added.
Later, the guest workers reached their accommodation and narrated this incident to their friends, Mono and Sheik Shavan. Mono and Shavan told them that they too had been assaulted by the same people when they had been eating pani puri near Gandhi Park, he added.
The Variety Hall police registered a case under the IPC sections 294 (using obscene language) and 323 (punishment for voluntarily causing hurt) and 506 (II) (punishment for criminal intimidation). The police checked the CCTV footage to confirm the assault. A team swung into action and arrested the four people.
A higher police officer said an inquiry revealed that Surya Prakash P Prakash were members of the Hindu Munnani. A search was conducted in their houses. An inquiry was under way to find out if the Hindu Munnani has any connections with the attacks, police said.