Amid widespread reports of vandalism in the city, the Coimbatore police on Saturday, September 24, arrested two men affiliated with Hindutva rightwing outfits for waylaying and assaulting a member of the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI). Padayappa and Nanda Prakash of the Bharat Sena organisation, along with Vignesh of the Hindu Munnani, had allegedly attacked 42-year-old Jabarullah while he was on the way home on Friday. Both Jabarullah and Vignesh, who were injured in the attack, have been admitted to the Coimbatore Medical College (CMC) Hospital, while the other two have been arrested.
Both parties have filed a complaint against each other at the C4 Rathinapuri Police Station. Jabarullah, a Kannappa Nagar resident, has stated in his complaint that the trio had also damaged his scooter. The police have booked Padayappa, Nanda Prakash and Vignesh under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 294(b) (sings, recites or utters any obscene song, ballad or words), 323 (punishment for voluntarily causing hurt), 324 (voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons or means), 307 (attempt to murder), 506 (ii) (punishment for criminal intimidation) of Indian Penal Code (IPCP), and Section 3(i) of the Tamil Nadu Property (Prevention of Damage and Loss) Act. Meanwhile, Jabarullah has been charged with IPC sections 294(b), 323, 324, and 506 (ii).
In the backdrop of the arrest of Popular Front of India (PFI) functionaries in Coimbatore by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) as part of a nation-wide crackdown, several such incidents of violence have been reported in the city since Friday. After unidentified persons hurled a Molotov cocktail at a shop belonging to a BJP functionary in Coimbatore on Friday morning, packets of petrol and diesel were thrown at shops, properties, and vehicles owned by the BJP, RSS, and Hindu Munnani workers across the city. Vehicles of Hindu Munnani and BJP officials were vandalised in Pollachi and Kuniyamuthur areas. A two-wheeler parked in the Saibaba Colony area was also set ablaze. Police have initiated a probe into all incidents, and security has also been beefed up in Coimbatore in this regard.
Meanwhile, on Saturday, Coimbatore District Collector GS Sameeran held a meeting with Coimbatore Police Commissioner V Balakrishnan and other officials in connection with the violence. The Collector also met with 94 Jamaat leaders. Higher police officials including West Zone Inspector General of Police R Sudhakar, Commissioner Balakrishnan, and Superintendent of Police (SP) V Badri Narayanan also discussed the law and order issues with Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary V Irai Anbu in an online meeting.
During a press conference later, Sameeran said that every person engaging in violence will be arrested in a couple of days. “People do not have to panic. The police are checking the CCTV footage to identify the miscreants,” he said. Meanwhile, Balakrishnan warned that anyone who shares misinformation on social media and anything that is likely to create enmity among communities will be booked under the Tamil Nadu Goondas Act.
Anticipating further spread of the violence, around 4,000 police personnel have been deployed in the Coimbatore district. Security has been tightened at 11 existing checkpoints of the city, besides which another 28 checkpoints have been set up to inspect vehicles. Nearly 45 police vehicles are on patrolling duty.
L Murugan, Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting and Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, condemned the attacks. “Raids are conducted based on reliable information obtained by the NIA. But the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) is politicising the issue,” he said in Trichy on Saturday.
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