Six killed in police firing in Paramakudi

PARAMAKUDI: Six persons were killed when police fired to disperse a rampaging mob at the Paramakudi five point road junction here on Sunday. The area almost turned into a war zone in the morning, as news that Dalit leader John Pandian was put under house-arrest in Thoothukudi spread among people gathered here to pay respects at the memorial of Emmanuel Sekaran, a freedom fighter from the community.Chief Minister J Jayalali­thaa condemned the violence and defended the police action, while announcing a solatium of `1 lakh to the kin of the dead.According to sources, John Pandian had planned to meet the family members of a Dalit student Palani Kumar of M Pacherry village who was killed by a gang on Saturday, before he went to pay his respects at the Emmanuel Sekaran memorial. Fearing that Pandian would incite violence, police personnel detained him at Vallanadu village.Right from the morning on Sunday, crowds of people were seen moving towards the memorial of Sekaran. On hearing the news of Pandian’s detention, his followers staged an impromptu road-picketing at the five point road junction in Paramakudi. More than 2,000 people gathered at the spot and started throwing slippers and wooden logs at police personnel who were trying to disperse the angry mob.Unable to control the mob, the police resorted to lathi charge. This angered the mob, which retaliated and chased the police personnel back by over half a kilometre.Meanwhile, a group set fire to a Vajra riot control vehicle and damaged more than 20 vehicles of the police and others on the stretch. They also set fire to a hut and a shop. The police then threw teargas shells to disperse the mob but even this proved futile. Seeing no other option, the police opened fire, in which six people were killed. Defending the police action, the Chief minister blamed some people for disrupting law and order “for their own political gains.”She said, “The protesters indulged in large-scale violence and torched police vehicles. Police opened fire in self defence and to protect public property as they (the mob) threw petrol bombs.”