In the wee hours of Thursday, May 23, a Greater Chennai Police personnel allegedly under the influence of alcohol along with another man suspected to be a Home Guard volunteer, attacked a 13-year-old boy who sustained injuries to his head in Perambur, North Chennai. The boy along with his cousin was travelling in a two-wheeler when the police officers attacked them in an attempt to stop the duo who were speeding.
Mohamed Sainshah, the father of the 13-year-old victim told TNM that his son along with a cousin had ventured out to buy tea in a two-wheeler at around 2:50 am on Thursday, when the incident took place. Sainshah said that the boys began to speed their vehicle due to the fear of being caught by the police and that a man who was standing with the police, who reportedly is a Home Guard personnel, had attacked his son while attempting to stop them.
Sainshah alleged that a lathi was used to strike his son and that it hit the back of his head, causing a severe injury. The family had then admitted him to the Stanley Government Hospital for treatment and then went in search of the police officers who had caused the injury.
“We located them near the Perambur Tahsildar Office and confronted them about the incident. However, the officers denied the allegations. Both of them were stinking of alcohol and seemed too intoxicated,” Sainshah told TNM. The K1 Sembium station police later arrived at the scene and urged the family to admit the minor to a private hospital and requested them to not escalate the matter further.
Sainshah however, filed a complaint at the Deputy Commissioner Office, Otteri. In his complaint, he named two people, one was Santosh, an alleged home guard personnel, who had attacked the minor, and the other, Sub Inspector (SI) Anuj belonging to the Sembiam- K1 police station- who was present with Santosh.
Reacting to the incident, Eswaran, Deputy Commissioner (DC) of Pulianthope, said that a First Information Report (FIR) has been filed. But he denied Santosh of being a Home Guard Police and claimed that he was only a friend of Sub Inspector Anuj. “Sub Inspector Anuj is not responsible for the incident, it was his friend Santhosh who had beaten up the boy”, he told TNM.
H Gayas, North Chennai spokesperson for the Tamil Nadu Muslim Munnetra Kazhagam (TMMK), who had helped the parents in admitting the boy in the hospital said, “The Police is trying to shield Sub Inspector Anuj. They are also alleging that the Home Guard personnel Santhosh is not affiliated with the police department to avoid tarnishing the reputation of the Police force.”
At Stanley Government Hospital, the minor was treated for dizziness and shivering on Thursday. The hospital reports confirmed that the boy was hit by a wooden lathi on the back of his head. He is undergoing further tests and examinations by physiologists, his family said.