Cops gatecrash gangster’s birthday bash, arrest 73

This is the first time that the city police have picked up so many history- sheeters in a single operation.

Binu is said to have organised the get- together to reestablish his position in the city’s underworld mafia as he was maintaining a low profile for the last five years to recover from a leg injury. He was also a diabetic. 

Police said that at least eight murder suspects, against whom warrants were pending, were nabbed from the spot. Binu, who is facing at least three cases of murder among 15 other cases, was celebrating his 50th birthday when police team swooped down on the party. 

He, along with two of his close confidantes - A Kanakaraj (36) and H Vignesh alias Vikki (23) - however, managed to escape on motorbikes. 

Police received a tip-off about the party when they intercepted a vehicle on suspicion at Pallikaranai. ‘Pallu’ Madhan, a gangster, who was in the car and in an inebriated state, told the police that they were heading to a birthday party of a friend at Malayambakkam near Mangadu.

Since Madhan was found in possession of weapons, police detained him. On suspicion, they informed Ambattur Deputy Commissioner Sarvesh Raj, who, in turn, alerted the police stations in and around Malayambakkam, including Avadi, Porur, Villivakkam and Mangadu. Around 9 pm, 50 plainclothesmen entered the shed of Ravi Transports, off ORR, just minutes after Binu had cut his birthday cake. 

Eight cars and 38 two-wheelers besides a large number of cellphones and machetes, were recovered by the police from the spot. The mobile phones had photos of Binu wearing a garland and cutting the cake with a machete. “There has been a record of two or three gangsters meeting with their teams. So, the purpose of this birthday party needs to be probed further,” said an officer. 

“It was team work. Members of the anti-gangster team acted on the initial information received. Later, more officers and teams got involved before carrying out the operation. A total of 75 persons were rounded up. As many as 69 of them were arrested. Four of them were booked for breaking the peace bond and two of them were released as they were found to be juveniles,” Chennai City Police Commissioner A K Viswanathan said.