TVK man hacked to death in Chennai; cops transferred

CHENNAI: A 45-year-old TVK cadre was publicly hacked to death by a gang near Besant Nagar on Saturday (September 5) night.

The police arrested five youths in connection with the alleged revenge killing.

Adyar Deputy Commissioner of Police AC Karthikeyan and Sastri Nagar inspector Rohini were transferred to vacancy reserve in less than 24 hours of the crime.

The deceased, S Kannan of Vannanthurai, was a history-sheeter who made a living by renting out cars to IT companies. Kannan had recently shifted allegiance from the AIADMK to the ruling TVK.

According to the police, Kannan's murder was plotted by a 20-year-old, V Barani, whose father and uncle were allegedly murdered by Kannan’s associates.

On Saturday night, Kannan was walking along the Ellaiamman Koil Street in Vannanthurai when a motorcycle-borne gang intercepted him and rounded him up and repeatedly slashed him with machetes.

Onlookers tried to fend off the attackers by hurling stones at them, but the gang left only after ensuring that Kannan would not survive.

The CCTV recordings of the attack were widely circulated on social media.

Sastri Nagar Police personnel moved the severely injured Kannan to a hospital, where he was declared as brought dead.

The five arrested Barani, Rakesh (20), Hariharan (20) all from Adyar, and Naresh (20) of Thiruvanmiyur and Manikandan (20) of Kottur, have been remanded in judicial custody.

In 2009, Barani's uncle Siva was murdered by Kannan's associates, and in 2016, his father Velu was murdered in Saidapet, in retaliation for murdering a history-sheeter and DMK man Mangaleri Kandan at the Tiruvanmiyur market in 2014.

Udhayanidhi attacks CM Vijay over ‘law & order’

Leader of Opposition Udhayanidhi Stalin on Sunday questioned the law and order situation in Tamil Nadu, alleging that the history-sheeter’s killing exposed the government’s failure to ensure public safety.

Taking to social media, Udhayanidhi said: “Before the chief minister is to reply to a debate on the police department’s demand for grants on Monday, one of his party functionaries has been murdered in the capital... This is the ‘successful law and order’ situation in TN,”

Udhayanidhi said. He also took a swipe at the TVK, asking whether the party has become a garbage bin that provides refuge to history-sheeters.

He urged the government to stop looking for ways to blame the DMK and instead focus on public safety.