Overview
- An alleged nine-member, masked gang on motorcycles attacked residents with sickles near a tea shop in Perumpaththu on March 2, with reports of a petrol bomb being hurled before the assailants fled.
- The deceased were identified as John, a local man with disabilities, and a migrant worker from Odisha reported as D. Trinath Kata or Srinath Gadda, while several injured remain hospitalised and at least one is critical.
- Nanguneri police say seven suspects, including four teenagers, are in custody; names released include Kannan, Uchimahali (Mittai), Vasanthakumar, Antony Michael, Subbaiah (Subash), Kalyani and Raja.
- Two of the arrested were previously accused in a 2023 caste attack on Dalit student Chinnadurai, though police have not confirmed a caste motive in the latest case and say the motive is under investigation, with some reports pointing to inter-village rivalry.
- Security was tightened after highway blockades by residents demanding swift action; multiple special teams, senior officers and CCTV/forensic checks are guiding the probe, with efforts continuing to trace any others believed involved and cases registered under BNS, the Arms Act and the Explosive Substances Act.