An alleged attack on Scheduled Caste residents in Idakattur near Manamadurai in Sivaganga district left three people injured, police said. Nine people have been named in the case, and five have been arrested so far.
According to the complaint, a quarrel broke out around 3 pm on March 3 between Pandiyaraj (41) of Chettikulam and Mahesh (42) of V. Pudhukulam. Raju (42), a Scheduled Caste resident of Idakattur, intervened and asked them not to fight.
Later that night, around 8 pm, Mahesh allegedly arrived with friends on three two-wheelers looking for Pandiyaraj at a relative’s house. When Pandiyaraj was not found, the group allegedly confronted Raju and assaulted him, and also attacked Rajendran (45), Raju’s brother, and Dinesh (29), a relative, when they tried to stop the assault.
The group later went to Chettikulam and allegedly damaged household items at Pandiyaraj’s home. The injured were admitted to the Sivaganga Government Hospital.
Police registered a case in the early hours of March 4. After videos of the incident were shared on social media and political leaders raised allegations of inaction, the SIPCOT police booked the accused under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Sivaganga SP Sivaprasad said five people—Irulappan, Balamurugan, Velmurugan, Bharathi and a minor—have been arrested, and four others, including Mahesh, are being traced.
