A gang hacked a 27-year-old woman when she was getting into her car outside the Saibaba temple in Aminjikarai on Thursday evening, in full public view.
The victim, who is the wife of the grandson of well-known educationalist Jeppiaar, was admitted to hospital and her condition is critical.
Aminjikarai police said the attack took place around 6 p.m. when the victim Saranya Sai, a resident of U Block in Anna Nagar, had come to the temple as usual for Thursday prayers.
“She came out of the temple and was about to get into a waiting car when four armed men hacked her with knives and sickles. She was cut but managed to get into her sedan and the driver of the vehicle rushed her to a private hospital in Shenoy Nagar,” said an investigating officer.
Saranya was given first-aid and was then taken to Apollo Hospitals on Greams Road. She suffered cuts on her left leg and was stabbed in the right abdomen, apart being injured on her face.
The gang was lurking around Pulla Avenue near the temple and knew that Saranya would come there on Thursday. They had intended to murder the young woman, the officer said.
The temple witnesses large crowds on Thursdays and on the evening of the incident, the place was filled with devotees, mainly women.
The attack stunned other visitors and some who attempted to go to Saranya’s aid were scared away by the men who brandished their weapons. After the attack, the men fled on their motorcycles.
Aminjikarai police have registered a case and have launched a hunt for the assailants.
