Chennai, June 18(BPNS)
The fights based on caste continues in certain areas of rural Tamil Nadu with a group of people belonging to a particular caste hacked an ITI student, B.Balamukesh of Marudham Nagam, Munneerpalam in Tirunelveli district on Wednesday night. The ITI student is from a Scheduled Caste community while the attackers were from another upper caste community.
The assailants attacked Balamukesh while he was taking bath in a channel on Wednesday evening. He received cut injuries across his body and was rushed to Tirunelveli Medical College hospital.
The Muneerpalam police registered a case against Sankaralingam, Arun Pandian, Arumugam, Vathu Mani, and some other unidentified people under various sections of the IPC and SC/ST( Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
After the news of the attack on Balamukesh was received in his village at Marudham Nagar, a group of youngsters from his village entered the village of the accused and attacked and ransacked their houses, destroyed a car, an autorickshaw and a motorbike. They also set on fire two hay stacks. More than 10 houses with tile roofing was damaged following stone-pelting.
The attackers also blocked the road passing through Marudham Nagar demanding arrest of those involved in the attack against Balamukesh. The protestors told the police that the atrocities against the SC/ST people were continuing unabated in the village since 2019 when Rajamani of Marudham Nagar was murdered.
In the meanwhile the other caste people blocked the Tirunelveli- Papanasam highway demanding the arrest of those who ransacked their houses and destroyed their vehicles and set fire on the hay sacks.
In a related incident the same group who attacked Balamukesh entered Subramaniyapuram Sri Lanka refugee camp and attacked Chinnadurai 55 and Perumal,65 with sickles and escaped. Residents of the refugee camp also conducted a roadblock following the attack.
A large police posse led by Inspector General of South Zone , T.S. Anbu is camping in the area to prevent untoward incidents.
However the area is tense and Chinnamanikyam of Madhur Nagar while speaking to BPNS said, “The upper caste people are making life miserable for us and if the police and the administration does not take a positive action to soothe the tension, things will get out of the hands. In 2019, Rajamani, a dalit was killed by an attack from the upper caste people and now Balamukesh is attacked and luckily he has survived due to the timely intervention of his friends who took him to Tirunelveli Medical College. This cannot be allowed to continue as people are living in constant fear of being attacked any time.”
